Beetroot Halwa

Ingredients:

2 cups peeled and grated beetroot

1 cup sugar

1-2 tsp ghee 

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

5-6 Cashew nuts 

Method:

Heat ghee in a thick kadai. Add the beetroot. Keep mixing it once in a while. Keep the heat on medium to avoid burning. When it looks cooked and reduced in quantity, add sugar & mix well to cook it. When the mixture starts looking dry, take off heat. Add cardamom powder and mix.Serve warm or chilled. Add cashews fried in ghee on top.

Suji Halwa

Ingredients:

1 cup suji (semolina) 

¾ cup sugar

1.5 cup whole milk 

1.5 cup water 

3 tablespoon ghee (or butter)

1 teaspoon cardamom pods (elaichi) 

2 tablespoon raisin

For Garnish:

2 tablespoon cashew nuts

Method:

Heat ghee in a karahi. Add cardamom and heat few seconds in medium heat. Add semolina and heat for few minutes with constant stirring in low-medium heat. Add sugar and half of both raisin, and cashew. Heat few more minutes in low-medium heat. Add water and milk. Mix well and heat until you get desired consistency. Garnish with remaining raisin and cashew nuts.Serve hot.

Dudhi halwa

Ingredients:

2 cups grated bottle gourd (doodhi / lauki)

4 cups milk

2 cups sugar

5 to 6 powdered cardamoms

Few saffron (kesar) strands

10 almonds (badam)

15 to 20 raisins (kismis)

3 tsp ghee

Method:

Squeeze out excess water from the bottle gourd. Heat the ghee in a pan and add the grated bottle gourd and saute till it turns translucent. Add sugar and milk, mix it well and simmer for 20 minutes. Cook till the bottle gourd becomes dry and cooked, milk is required, while stirring frequently. Add cardamoms, saffron, raisins and mix it well. Serve hot, garnished with the almonds.

Gajar Halwa

Ingredients:

1 kg Carrots

1 litre Milk

1 teaspoon Cardamom seeds

3/4 cup Water

3 tablespoons Ghee

2 tablespoons Raisins

2 tablespoons Almonds

2 tablespoons Pistachios

450 grams Sugar

6 chopped roasted cashew nuts

Method:

Wash and grate the carrots. Soak the raisins in water for 30 minutes. Blanch and shred the nuts. Put the water to boil, when it starts boiling add the grated carrots. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Add the milk. Cook on a low flame for 1 hour stirring occasionally. Add sugar, mix well and cook till the sugar has dissolved and all the milk has been absorbed. Add ghee and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add the slightly crushed cardamoms and the raisins. Mix well. Remove from heat and arrange in a serving dish. Garnish with almondsm, cashew nuts and pistachios. Serve cold, hot or at room temperature.