Gajar Ka Halwa (Carrot Pudding)

Everyone complains about how hard it is to make Gajar Ka Halwa. If you don’t have a food processor, I understand the difficulty. Otherwise, it’s pretty simple. Currently, the most difficult thing I’ve made were the Holiday Pin Wheel Cookies – they landed on the Kitchen Disasters page if your interested in my shame. I made the halwa in under an hour so it is definitely doable.

Some random notes: The key to delicious Gajar Ka Halwa is to use plump juicy carrots. The old school method involves Khoya which is solid milk fat. You can’t find it in the US. You could make your own if you have 5 hours to kill in the kitchen… Or you can just substitute it with Ricotta Cheese. I made this with Mascarpone Cheese – it’s a bit creamier than ricotta and has a milder flavor. I also added some nutmeg, I have no reason for why I did it – just a gut feeling. Sometimes cooking is like that.

Ingredients

2 lbs Carrots (grated)
1 1/4 cups Sugar
1 cup Ricotta Cheese (I used Mascarpone)
1/2 cup Butter (1 stick)
1 – 2 tsp freshly ground Cardamom seeds
1/8 tsp freshly grated Nutmeg
1 cup Whole Milk
1 1/2 tbsp Canola Oil
10 Almonds (crushed)
10 Cashews (crushed)
1 – 2 tbsp Golden Raisins

Method

The most labor intensive part: grating the Carrots. Dust off that big ol’ box grater and get to work. But if you have a food processor it should take only a few minutes.

In a heavy bottomed pot add the Milk, Sugar, and Carrots. Heat to medium high. Stir until the moisture is gone which will take 30 – 35 min. Yep, this part is pretty rough, too. My arm was about ready to quit after 20 min.

Add the Butter and Ricotta. The halwa should start to pull away from the edges of the pot. When the fat starts to separate turn off the heat. Add the Cardamom & Nutmeg.

In a small pan heat the Oil on medium. Add the Raisins and crushed Almonds and Cashews. Saute until the nuts are lightly toasted and the raisins are plump. Pour over the Halwa.