Yesterday I prepared carrot halwa with khoya in pressure cooker (Gajar Ka Halwa With Khoya) without using milk/condensed milk for the first time. I made it for my Thursday Guru Pooja prasad. It came out very well. As I made in pressure cooker, I made it very quickly and easily. Carrot halwa is my favorite dessert in restaurant.
My Lunch buffet in restaurants would be incomplete without tasting hot carrot halwa with a scoop of cold vanilla ice cream. Its a divine combo. Long back I had shared carrot halwa (Gajar halwa in Hindi) recipe without khoya in pressure cooker. In that recipe, I used milk to cook carrot. But here I made it without milk as we are adding khoya in it. I used water instead of milk. So the color of my halwa came out bright in color.It tasted like the one we get in sweet shops and hotels. I was very happy with the results. You too give this recipe a try and share your feedback with me.
I have also shared some tips and variations in the method with step by step pictures section for better understanding. Hope beginners would try this carrot halwa recipe and make it easily. So, lets see how to make Carrot halwa/Gajar ka halwa with khoya in a pressure cooker.
Grated carrot - 2 cups ( I used 4 medium sized carrots)
Sugar - 1/3 cup (Granulated crystal sugar)
Grated or crumbled khoya - 1/3 cup ( I used milky mist brand)
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Water - 5 tbsp ( You can also use boiled milk)
Ghee - 2 tbsp
Cashews - Few
HOW TO MAKE CARROT HALWA WITH KHOYA
Crumble or grate khoya, set aside.
Wash,peel skin and grate carrot in big holed grater.
Heat ghee in pressure cooker base and roast cashews. Saute carrot till raw smell goes off.
Add water and cook in high flame for 2 whistles. Carrot cook well and becomes soft.
Add sugar and mix till halwa starts to leaves the sides. Add khoya,cardamom powder. Switch off the flame immediately.
Mix well till Khoya combines with carrot. Remove and let it cool down.
Halwa becomes non-sticky when it becomes warm. Serve warm & enjoy with ice cream.
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Grate or crumble khoya. Set aside. Wash and peel the skin of carrot. Grate it using a big holed grater. Keep it aside.
Heat ghee in a pressure cooker base.Roast cashews till golden. Add grated carrot and saute well for 5 to 7 minutes in medium flame till raw smell vanishes completely. Carrot turns pale orange in color. If you don’t saute properly, halwa smells raw.
Add water(If you want dark colored halwa) Or milk and pressure cook in high flame for 2 whistles. Remove the lid after steam is released completely. Carrot becomes soft and cook well. If you find any moisture content or water in the cooked carrot, saute well in high flame till it becomes dry.
Add sugar and mix in medium flame.Sugar melts and halwa becomes watery. Keep mixing in medium flame till halwa starts to become slightly thick and leave the sides of cooker. Do not wait for it to become too thick.
Lower the flame completely. Add cardamom powder, crumbled khoya. Mix well and Switch off the flame immediately. Mix till khoya spreads with carrot in off fire. Heat of the carrot is sufficient to partially melt & mix the khoya. No need to mix till khoya melts completely.
Khoya should be visible here and there just like the ones served in hotels & sweet shops. Halwa may look sticky when its hot. But when it turns warm, it becomes non-sticky and comes to right texture. You can reheat in microwave oven for 1 minute in high power and serve hot if you like OR enjoy it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
This halwa stays good for one day without refrigeration and up to 3 days with refrigeration. If you refrigerate the halwa, you can reheat it at the time of serving.
Enjoy !
Note
If you want carrot to be visible in the halwa,you must use a grater with big sized holes.
Carrot halwa smells raw if you don’t saute it well. By the time you saute, carrot gets half cooked.
Pressure cooking helps carrot to cook quickly. I added little water to cook carrot as I wanted bright colored halwa. Adding milk makes the halwa pale orange in color.
As we are adding khoya,there is no need to add milk for cooking carrot. But cooking in milk makes the halwa more rich.
Do not add more khoya than the mentioned quantity. It makes the halwa sticky.
Do not add less sugar. It makes the halwa smell raw. Do not stir the halwa for long time after adding sugar. Sugar caramelizes and halwa becomes chewy.
Try this easy, yummy Carrot halwa with khoya and enjoy with ice cream!
Long back I had shared a version of easy Bombay Karachi halwa / corn flour halwa as a beginners sweet. It tastes soft and slides in mouth. But recently I came across this chewy Bombay Karachi Halwa also known as Jelly halwa using the same ingredients but slightly different in procedure. The basic difference between soft halwa and chewy halwa (rubbery halwa) lies in the cooking time. Usually we remove the halwa as soon as it starts to release the ghee.
For chewy halwa, we need to cook for more time even after it released the ghee. So this halwa takes some extra cooking time when compared with the easy corn flour halwa. Even though mine was not so rubbery, it was chewy and hard when compared with the soft version. However we make it, this is a no fail recipe.Tastes great and its a must have sweet for Diwali.
Any beginner can dare to try this recipe as it doesn’t need any sugar syrup consistency. Just mixing and continuous stirring is the only job here. Corn flour, sugar, cardamom powder and ghee are the major ingredients. To make this chewy Bombay halwa recipe, I watched some Sindhi halwa recipes and Classic masala hut video in Youtube for the ingredients and measurements. It came out really well as I wished.
Actually I have divided the halwa mixture into two parts and tried it to know the difference in taste between soft halwa and chewy halwa. So I have made orange colored halwa with soft texture and the yellow ones tastes slightly chewy. So this is a two in one recipe. You can try any based on your liking.
Its my long time dream to make Kerala Kozhikode halwa. After trying this recipe, I have got some ideas on how to make it. I hope I will try that soon. So now lets see how to make this most popular and delicious Bombay Karachi halwa recipe with step by step pictures and video ! I clicked the cover picture by arranging different colored halwa after getting tempted by some halwa pictures in Google.
Lets see how to make Bombay Halwa recipe with step by step pictures and video !
Ghee - 3/4 cup OR Ghee - 1/2 cup + Refined oil - 1/4 cup
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Chopped nuts - a handful (I used cashews, badam and melon seeds)
How to make the recipe
In a wide bowl, dilute corn flour adding water.
In a kadai, dry roast nuts for a minute, remove in a plate.
Add sugar & water, melt it.
When the sugar syrup starts to boil,add corn flour mixture.
Stir till it thickens.Add ghee at regular intervals.
Mix till halwa starts to release ghee.Add cardamom powder, nuts and food color.Mix well.
Remove in a greased plate, cut after it cools down. Enjoy !
To make chewy corn flour halwa, you need to cook for another 20 minutes till ghee oozes out completely.!
Remove in a greased plate, cut after it cools down. Enjoy !
Bombay Karachi halwa Recipe - Step by step photos
In a wide bowl, mix 1 cup of corn flour & 2 cups of water.Beat well to make it lumps free. It should resemble milk.Set aside.
In a good non-stick kadai, dry roast chopped cashews, badam and whole melon seeds for 2 minutes. Remove in a plate.Keep it aside.
In the same kadai, add 2.5 cups of sugar and 1 cup of water. Mix well in medium flame till sugar is melted completely. Add 1 tsp lemon juice and mix well.
When the sugar syrup comes to boil, add diluted corn flour by mixing it well because all the corn flour would be settled in the bottom of bowl.So mix well before adding to sugar syrup.
Keep the flame medium high and start mixing with a ladle. In 5 to 10 minutes,corn flour becomes a thick paste.
Reduce the flame to medium and start adding 1 tbsp ghee. Add 1 tbsp ghee and mix well. After all the ghee is absorbed by the halwa, add 1 tbsp ghee again.As you cook, halwa becomes pale yellow in color.
Halwa becomes glossy, leaves the pan completely and starts to rotate with the ladle.
At this stage, add cardamom powder and roasted nuts.Continue stirring and add 1 tbsp ghee.
At one stage, halwa starts to release ghee in the sides. If you want soft halwa, you can remove at this stage to a greased bowl or bowl lined with butter paper.
I divided the halwa mixture into two parts to make both soft halwa and chewy halwa.I added orange food color to one. Mixed well and pour the mixture to the greased bowl.To serve as scoop of halwa in a bowl, you can serve it immediately before setting.
To make pieces, allow the halwa to cool down for 2 hours and then cut into pieces using a sharp knife.
I added yellow food color to another half of halwa mixture to make chewy halwa. For chewy halwa, you need to stir for another 20 to 30 minutes in medium to high flame till ghee comes out completely and halwa turns stretchy.The more time you cook, the more chewy and hard halwa would be. Mine was not so rubbery but it was chewy and hard when compared with soft version.
Actually I wanted to make both soft halwa and chewy halwa.So I divided the halwa mixture into two.Added yellow and orange food color to them. Mixed well and transferred orange colored halwa to the greased bowl and allowed to set it.
I cooked the yellow halwa for another 20 minutes adding 2 tbsp more ghee. All the ghee oozed out in the corner and middle of halwa. Drop some halwa in a plate and try to stretch it.If it stretches, halwa is ready. Then transfer to a greased bowl and allow it to set for 3 to 4 hours till its cooled down completely. It would be better if you set the halwa in an aluminium tray or bowl that is used for cakes because aluminum helps to withstand heat for long time and halwa becomes hard and chewy. Invert the halwa bowl onto a plate after its cooled down completely. Cut into pieces and enjoy. This halwa can be stored for one week without refrigeration.But keep in an air tight box.
Notes
Do not reduce the quantity of sugar and ghee.If you want, you can add more cooking oil and less ghee.
To make chewy halwa, you have to stir for long time till the halwa become stretchy.
You can add food color in the corn flour water or sugar syrup too. But I wanted to add 2 colors.So I cooked it without adding color and added at the end.
To make soft halwa, you have to remove it when it starts to release ghee in the sides of pan.
Try this easy, yummy Bombay halwa for this Diwali and Enjoy !
Every year during Diwali, my MIL makes Maida Burfi without fail. She calls it as Maida cake (All purpose flour sweet cake in English). Usually Tamil people mention burfi recipes as cake. For Diwali, many people especially South Indians love to try sweets recipes made from maida like burfi, badusha, sweet samosa, sweet maida biscuits etc.
Few years back, I posted an easy maida burfi with milk powder without using ghee during Diwali. Today I have shared my MIL’s version of maida burfi which has melt in mouth texture and tastes great. This is a beginners sweet that gives fool proof results if you use good conditioned non-stick pan.
It can be made with simple ingredients that are easily available at home like maida, sugar, ghee and cardamom powder. I have used green food color as we see in sweet stalls. But my MIL never uses food color. So this burfi comes out pale white without adding food color. Addition of food color is purely optional. If you are looking for an easy burfi recipe to try for this Diwali, you must try this maida burfi. I am sure anyone can make it easily and perfectly. I have made a full video recipe to help beginners.
Hope you will try it and share your feedback with me. Once you make it perfect, you can easily make chocolate maida burfi. I will post that recipe next week. Ok, lets see how to make maida burfi recipe with step by step pictures and video !
Heat ghee in a good non-stick pan and roast maida till nice aroma wafts.
In another non-stick pan, melt sugar adding water and boil till 1 string consistency.
Switch off the flame. Add food color and cardamom powder to sugar syrup.
Mix well and add roasted maida paste.Keep mixing without fire.
Mixture becomes thick and starts to leave the sides of pan.
Remove and spread in a greased tray.Level it and make pieces when warm.Remove after it cools down.
Remove after it cools down. Store in a box. Stays good for 10 days!
Maida burfi Recipe - Step by step photos
Heat 1/4 cup of melted ghee in a non-stick pan.Add maida/all purpose flour and roast in medium flame without burning it. It becomes a smooth paste leaving a nice aroma.
Remove the pan from the flame and keep aside. No need to remove the maida paste from pan.
In another non-stick pan or kadai, melt 1 cup of sugar adding 1/2 cup of water. Stir well and melt the sugar completely. Scrape the sides as well.
Boil the syrup in medium flame till frothy. Lower the flame completely and check for one string consistency.
To check it, take little syrup in your pointer finger from the back of ladle and slide it between your thumb and pointer finger.When you release the fingers, you will get single thin string without breaking.
If it doesn't form one string, boil the syrup for one more minute and check it again.
Switch off the flame. Add food color and cardamom powder, mix well and remove the kadai from stove. Add roasted maida paste and mix well without lumps.
Initially the mixture looks watery but when you keep mixing, it thickens and becomes a paste. It starts to leave the sides of pan and becomes thick but pourable paste.
As soon as it becomes a thick paste, remove from the kadai and spread it in the ghee greased plate OR a bowl lined with butter paper.Do not wait to become thick dough. Use a square shaped plate or bowl to make uniform pieces.Immediately spread the burfi mixture with a ghee greased bowl. Press it really well and seal the cracks if any using your fingers . Act quickly before it sets completely.
Let it rest for 20 minutes to become warm. Invert into a plate. Remove the butter paper. Then cut into square shapes with a sharp knife greased with ghee. Remove the pieces after its cooled completely.Store in an air tight box and enjoy for one week to 10 days.
Notes
Do not reduce or increase the quantity of sugar and ghee. Burfi becomes hard if the sugar or ghee is reduced. It will become too soft and break if you add more ghee or sugar. So please follow the same measurement.
One string consistency is most important for this burfi. If you are unable to check it, just boil the syrup till frothy and pour it using a ladle. The last drop falls slowly by forming a string. This is also an indication for one string sugar syrup.
You should add the roasted maida only after switching off the flame. Heat of the kadai is sufficient for the mixture to thicken.
Remove the burfi mixture as soon as it becomes thick and pourable. Do not wait for the paste to become thick dough. Burfi will get more cracks.
Try this easy, yummy melt in mouth Maida burfi for this Diwali and enjoy the festival !
Last year I shared an easy paal kozhukattai recipe with milk, coconut milk and sugar. I know paal kozhukattai is a very popular dessert recipe in Chettinad, Tamil nadu. So I was looking for some authentic recipes to try it. Finally I found it from an YouTube video of Nagu’s Nalabagam. Based on that recipe, I tried it yesterday for my Thursday Guru pooja neivedyam. It was very tasty with the nice flavor of coconut milk, jaggery and moong dal. It is prepared without milk. Still kozhukattai came out very soft. Addition of cooked moong dal makes the paal kozhukattai thick and more flavorful.
I guess there are many variations in this particular recipe. Friends from Chettinad region, do let me know if there is any change in this recipe. I am happy to try again and post it. Ganesh Chaturthi is fast approaching. I think many people make paal kozhukattai apart from other kozhukattai varieties. Try this yummy paal kolukattai with jaggery. You will love its result. Lets see how to make Chettinad style paal kozhukattai with step by step photos.
I will try to share some useful kozhukattai video recipes from tomorrow for Vinayagar Chaturthi .
Store bought kozhukattai flour or idiyappam flour - 1/2 cup ( I used Anil kozhukattai maavu)
Water - 3/4 to 1 cup
Thick coconut milk -1/2 cup
Grated jaggery - 3/4 cup ( Add 1 cup for more sweetness)
Moong dal - 1.5 tbsp
Water - 3 cups for cooking the rice balls
Cardamom - 2 nos
Sesame oil or ghee - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/4 tsp
How to make Chettinad paal kozhukattai
Dry roast and pressure cook moong dal. Grind coconut and take coconut milk.
Boil water. Add 1 tsp oil and salt.
When the water roll boil, add the rice flour. Stir well.
Mix well in low flame till its thick.
Dough will be formed.Remove from flame.
Remove in a plate and knead with greased hands for 5 minutes till smooth.
Make small balls from the dough and keep in a plate.
Boil 3 cups of water. Cook the balls till it floats on top.
Melt jaggery, strain and add the syrup, cardamom powder, moong dal. Boil for 5 minutes.Lastly add the coconut milk, mix once and switch off the flame. Serve hot!
Paal kozhukattai recipe - Step by step photo
Dry roast moong dal in a cooker base. Roast till it gets nice aroma. Add water and pressure cook till soft. Mash it and set aside. Grind 1 cup of grated coconut adding 1/2 cup warm water.Strain and extract thick milk from it. Keep aside.
In a wide kadai, boil 3/4 cup of water ( flour : water ratio is 1:1.5 or 2 cups based on the flour). Add 1 tsp sesame oil or ghee and salt.Let the water starts to roll boil.When the water starts to roll boil, lower the flame completely and add the rice flour.Mix without lumps.It will become a thick dough.
Switch off the flame, transfer to a plate.Let it become warm enough to handle.
Grease your hands with oil and knead the dough for 5 minutes till it becomes non-sticky, smooth and crack free.Cover the dough with a wet cloth till use.
Make small balls or cylinder shaped lengthy ones with the dough. Arrange them in a plate. While you roll the balls, cover the remaining dough with wet cloth. It should not dry.
Boil 3 cups of water in a wide bowl. When the water roll boils vigorously, add half of the rolled balls. Let it cook in high flame for 2 minutes. Do not cover it. Cooked kozhukattai will float on top. Now add the remaining rolled balls and cook everything together for 3 minutes.Stir it once in the middle gently.
Alternatively you can steam cook the balls in idli pot for 10 minutes and remove when warm. Please check my easy paal kolukattai recipe for step-by-step pictures.
Strain the jaggery syrup and add to the cooked kozhukattai water. Mix gently and boil for a minute.
Add cardamom powder, boiled moong dal and thick coconut milk. Mix well and boil for 1 minute in very low flame. Remove and serve hot or cold.
Notes
Adding oil in the water helps to cook the dough non-sticky and soft.
Kneading is important to make the dough crack free.
Kozhukattai will break and dissolve in water if you add without boiling the water. Water should roll boil well.
I used Anil Kozhukattai maavu.You can use idiyappam flour as well.
Try this yummy paal kozhukattai with jaggery and coconut milk. You will enjoy it !
Last year during Diwali, I tried this easy kalakand recipe using paneer and condensed milk ( Milk Maid) by watching YouTube video. Kalakand recipe is nothing but a rich milk cake. It is one of the popular desserts in West Bengal, Rajasthan, Delhi and some places in North India. Traditionally it is prepared by boiling and thickening milk with sugar. It takes hours to prepare.
This easy and instant kalakand recipe calls for just 3 ingredients namely Paneer/Chenna, Condensed milk and cardamom powder. For variations, it can be prepared with ricotta cheese instead of paneer and rose water or kewra essence can be added instead of cardamom powder. It can be prepared so easily and quickly. Its ideal for beginners. In North India, I heard people make Kalakand for Janmashtami as it is a milk based sweet. So I thought of sharing this easy and instant kalakand recipe for this Gokulashtami. Do try this easy, Instant Kalakand recipe using condensed milk and store bought paneer. Lets see how to make it with step by step photos.
Kalakand recipe with condensed milk
Easy, instant kalakand recipe with condensed milk / milk maid
Paneer / Indian Cottage Cheese - 1 cup ( I used Milky mist brand)
Milk maid or Amul condensed milk - 200 ml tin
Cardamom powder - 1/2 tsp
Butter or ghee - 1 tsp
HOW TO MAKE KALAKAND
Crumble or grate the paneer.
In a kadai, heat 1 tsp ghee and add the condensed milk. Mix well.
Add grated paneer, cardamom powder and mix well.
When the mixture thickens and leaves the sides of pan, switch off flame.
Transfer to a greased or butter paper lined bowl. Refrigerate for an hour. Cut into pieces.
Garnish with chopped nuts. Serve !
METHOD - STEP BY STEP PICTURES
Take the store bought paneer and grate it. Measure 1 cup from it ( loosely packed) and keep aside.Line a pan with butter paper or grease it well with ghee and set aside.
Heat ghee in a non-stick kadai and add the condensed milk. Mix well in very low flame.
Add grated paneer, cardamom powder or rose water and mix well. Paneer absorbs condensed milk and it will thicken initially. But if you keep mixing in low flame, mixture will become loose and watery.
Keep the flame medium and stir well. After 3 to 4 minutes, it will start to thicken and leave the sides of pan. Mix for a minute. You will see the mixture becoming grainy and thick. Switch off the flame and remove the pan immediately.
Pour it to the butter paper lined pan for 2 inch thickness. Level it and refrigerate it for 1 to 2 hours till its well set. Garnish with chopped nuts and stud it well. Cut into pieces and serve chilled for best taste.
Enjoy !
Note
You can add some sugar ( say 1tbsp) if you feel sweet is less.
Fresh chena tastes the best. But I used store bought paneer.
If you mix for long time, kalakand may become chewy.So remove at the right time.
If you are not able to cut into pieces, refrigerate for more time.
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