Carrot Halwa/Ghajar Ka Halwa

Carrot Halwa/Ghajar Ka Halwa

Ingredients 

1. Shredded carrots 20 oz(284 grams)

2. Whole milk 1/2 cup

3. Sugar 1-2 cups

4. Khoya/mawa milk powder 1-2 cups(I used mawa milk powder)

5. Cardamom powder 1/4 tsp 

6. Raisins 10

7. Cashews 15

8. Ghee 3 tbsp plus 1 tbsp for frying the cashews & raisins 

Method Of Preparation 

1. Add 3 tbsp ghee in a pressure cooker. When it is hot, add the shredded carrots & sauté for about 4 minutes. 

2. Add milk to the carrots & pressure cook for around 6 whistles. Wait for the pressure to release. Now open the cooker & you should see the carrots softened. Using your ladle, mash the carrots a little. If there's any liquid(milk) in the pressure cooker, then cook the carrots on a medium flame till all the water evaporates.

3. Now add the mawa milk powder or khoya & mix it well with the carrots & bind them together & cook for a minute. Now you will see the carrots beginning to stick to the bottom of the pressure cooker. It should stick but shouldnt burn(see pic).

4. At this point, add the sugar & mix well. When you add the sugar, you will see the carrots attain a nice bright red color. 

5. The halwa will once again become liquidy once you add the sugar. On a medium flame, cook till all the water evaporates & the halwa thickens. Alternatively, if there is a lot of liquid & if you want, after adding sugar you can pressure cook for two whistles & then turn off the gas. When you open the pressure cooker, you will see a very beautiful color & texture. 

6. Sprinkle cardamom powder & give it a stir.

7. In a pan, add ghee. When the ghee gets hot, add cashews & fry till they become golden brown. Remove from the ghee & add it to the halwa. Now add the raisins, when they puff up in the ghee, add them to the halwa along with the ghee. 

Notes: 

1. You can add as little as 1 cup of khoya or as much as 2 cups of khoya. If you want a richer texture, add more khoya. It will taste good either ways. 

2. Add 1 cup of sugar & do a taste test. If you feel it's less, add one more cup. 

3. You can also add almonds & pistachios along with raisins & cashews. 

4. You may add the raisins & nuts to the ghee before adding the carrots. That is when the ghee gets hot, add the cashews & raisins & fry them well in the ghee & then add the carrots.

5. Pressure cooking after adding the sugar is optional. You may do it if there's too much water in the halwa. Pressure cooking gives a very bright color to the halwa. If there's not much water in the halwa, then you can even pressure cook upto 1 whistle instead of two.