Gajar means carrot and halwa actually means porridge, but is used for a dessert that can be made from different things. Today I will teach you how to make a beloved and well-known dessert from Punjab – halwa made from carrots. It is a myth that Indian food takes a long time to make and when making this halwa, you have to be patient. The myth was true until the food processor was invented, today most things can be made in an hour or less, as long as you have a little order in the kitchen and some electrical helpers.
That's exactly what we're a bit spoiled with these days with machines for everything. Even electric toothbrushes! I laughed out loud the first time I heard about electric toothbrushes and thought how lazy can you be? The irony is that I've become quite addicted to them, I feel like my teeth don't get as clean if I don't use the electric one...
Well, back to the kitchen. Of course, making halwa takes time, but you can save some time by grating the carrots in a machine. I also use paneer in it. When I first make it, I like to use a couple of kilos of carrots. For those of you who want to start carefully, I have made this recipe. I'll hear from you when you've tried it. Good luck!
You need:
500 g carrots
½ cup water
1 l whole milk
1 cream
150 gr paneer
1 tbsp ghee
50-60 grams sugar
1 tsp ground cardamom seeds
nuts/almonds to taste
optional coconut paste to sprinkle over
Procedure:
- Grate the carrots finely, boil them quickly in water, add milk and cream.
- Cook everything together until the liquid is almost cooked through, it must not burn or scorch at the bottom. Stir regularly and add half of the cardamom seeds.
- Make paneer and squeeze out all the liquid in a cloth or sieve. It should not be shaped, but crumbled into the pot when all the milk and cream have almost boiled away.
- Add ghee, the rest of the cardamom seeds, sugar and possibly coarsely crushed nuts/almonds. Almonds should be scalded first.
Remember to have medium heat so it doesn't burn on the bottom!
This tastes lovely lukewarm with vanilla ice cream, alternatively with cream or without any accompaniments with chai with ginger or cinnamon . The shelf life is about 3 weeks in the refrigerator.
It is also possible to make halwa from chickpea flour or with semolina . Hope you have a great celebration tomorrow. Wishing you all the best in the new year. Thank you so much for clicking in and following along. 
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