Gajar ka Halwa (Carrot Halwa)

Gajar ka Halwa is apparently India's one of the most popular desserts. Originating in Punjab, it is now a favorite among all Indians. 
My memories of Gajar ka halwa dates back to late 80s and early 90s when arrival of winter was marked by the preparation of this dessert in every household in Jammu. 
So, not wasting much time, here is your share of recipe:

Ingredients
1 kg Carrots

6 tbsp of pure Ghee
1 Litre Milk
Sugar
Cardamoms
Sugar
A can of condensed milk (optional)
Nuts of your choice

Method

• Peel and grate the carrots. Keep aside.
• In a deep Kadhai, add Ghee. Once it is hot, add the grated carrots.
• Stir well on high heat. 
• Now, add milk and sugar. Stir well
• Cook well on gentle heat till the milk thickens and the mixture turns slightly red in colour.
• Stir well on high heat now and add chopped nuts.
• Allow it to cool for sometime.

Garnish with shredded almonds and serve.

Aamras

Aamras is one of the most commonly seen desserts in Gujrati and Maharashtrian weddings and I always wondered how someone can serve Mango pulp as a dessert...

I finally tasted this heavenly dish in my office canteen... and  I simply loved it.

I never knew it was so simple to make. One can use any type of Mango... The only prerequisite being its sweetness...

One fine Sunday, I decided to make Aamras and Puris for breakfast... though my husband was initially a bit skeptical about it.. He loved it...

Ingredients

Mangoes of course (you can choose any variety, though alphonso would be the best)

Powdered Sugar (As per the sweet quotient of the mangoes)

Milk (3 tbsps)

Saffron, a few strands

Chopped cashews and raisins, for garnishing

Method

1. Peel and chop the mangoes into medium pieces
2. Put them in a blender, add sugar, milk and then blend till you get a thick paste
3. Remove from the blender and pour it in a serving bowl.
4. Chill in refrigerator
5. Garnish with chopped dry fruits and serve with hot puris

Coconut Stuffed Crepes (Pati Shapta)

The winter harvesting festival in Bengal is known as Poush Parbon which is usually celebrated in the second week of January (14^th-15^th January). Every year I wait for these days as it is the only time of the year when I can feed on home-made sweets for all the meals especially dinner. As a kid, I used to help my mom while she prepared Doodh puli, Sheddho Pithe, Shoru Chakli, Rosh Bora and the mouthwatering Pati Shapta. Though Pati Shapta is basically a rice pancake with a coconut filling, one can use khoya/kheer or even sooji as a filling. I however prefer the coconut filling as it renders that traditional flavour to your pancakes. I made pithes at home during the Sankranti this year and would post all the recipes under this label. As a starter, here is the recipe for Pati Shapta…

Ingredients

For the Filing

Freshly grated coconut

Jaggery (preferable Date Jaggery)

2 tbsp Ghee

For the Pancakes

2 cups Rice powder

All purpose flour ½ cup (Maida)

Cold Milk

Refined oil

Condensed milk – dilute it to Rabri like consistency (Optional) 

Cloves (To seal the pancakes - Optional)  

Method

• Put a Kadhai on low flame and add ghee to it.
• Add the grated coconut and mix it well with the ghee on high flame. Now add Jaggery and allow it to melt over a low flame.
• Once the Jaggery has melted, turn the flame to medium, and mix the coconut well with Jaggery. Keep stirring the mixture till it turns into sticky dough like mixture. Remove from flame and allow it to cool down.
• For the Pancackes- Mix rice powder and Maida with cold milk to make a batter (similar to Dosa batter)
• Place a tawa over medium flame; spread 1 tsp of refined oil on it.
• Now, put some batter and spread it to a make a small, round pancake (10cm radius approx).
• Once it is cooked, take it off the tawa, fill it with the coconut filling and roll it. You can seal the roll with a clove.

 

• Similarly make rest of the pancakes.
• In the end, you spread condensed milk generously over the pati shaptas and serve them hot.

 

GUJIYA

Gujiya is a famous Rajasthani dessert that is made with Suji, Maida or wheat flour and stuffed with khoya or sweet coconut filling. Being a Kid, I had seen my Mom make this sweet at home especially during Diwali. While my Dad was posted in Jammu, I remember how all the aunties in the neighborhood used to assemble in our house to prepare these delicious dumplings during various Hindu Festivals. The aroma of the roasted nuts and the Gujiyas being fried in pure Ghee used to drive me crazy.

This Diwali, I finally decided to try my hands on making this dessert at home and surprisingly it turned out well. I used Maida for making the Gujiyas and for the filling I have used grated coconut cooked in condensed milk along with dry fruits.

Ingredients

Oil or ghee for deep frying

For the Cover

500 Gms Maida

4 Tbsp refined oil

For the Filling

Grated Coconut

1 tin condensed milk

2 pods of green cardamom

25 Gms chopped cashews

10 Gms Watermelon seeds

10 Gms Raisins

Method

• Sieve the flour and add refined oil to it.
• Now add water and knead it into soft tight dough. Cover with a damp cloth and keep it aside.
• For the filling, take 2 tbsp of ghee in a Kadhai and add the grated coconut to it.
• Mix well and add condensed milk. Simultaneously throw in the cardamoms and chopped dry fruits. Keep stirring the mixture.
• Cook all the ingredients well till it attains a Khoya like consistency.  
• Remove from flame and allow it to cool down completely.
• Divide the dough into small balls and roll each ball into small round approximately 3 to 4 inch in diameter.
• Fill half the round with coconut filling, fold and seal the round by twisting the edges inwards. Be careful while folding so that the filling doesn’t come out. 

Moulds can also be used to get this shape

 

• Heat oil enough for deep frying in a Kadhai.
• Now, deep fry the Gujiyas till they are golden brown in colour.
• Drain the excess oil and remove from flame. You can keep the Gujiyas on oil absorbing paper or tissue papers in order to remove the excess oil.

The Final Look

Tips: Gujiya moulds are easily available in the market and they can also be used efficiently to roll out Gujiyas that are perfect in shape.

Depending upon the type of filling used, one can store the Gujiyas for several days to months. Since I have used wet coconut filling, it had to be consumed within a week. If you use khoya or only roasted and sweetened nuts for filling, it can be stored up to a month.