healthy sweets

CARROT-LOTUS SEEDS HALWA

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RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

5-6 big carrots grated (2 heaped cups)

1 cup lotus seeds slightly tossed in ghee,and

powdered coarsely .

3/4 cup sugar or to taste

A pinch of nutmeg powder

1 tsp cardamon powder

1 cup milk

2 tbsp wheat flour/ all purpose flour

50 gm khova or 2 tbsp milk powder

A pinch of salt

A pinch of edible camphor ( optional)

A pinch of yellow/orange food colouring

1/2 cup ghee ( or more to your preference)

Few cashew nuts,pumpkin seeds

METHOD

Heat 3-4 tbsp ghee,and sauté carrots till raw

smell is gone .

Add the roasted and powdered lotus seeds,milk

and khova.

Mix well and allow to cook till it is partially

dry .

Next add the sugar,and the flour,and the

remaining ghee,nuts,and the rest of the

ingredients and cook till thick.

Remove from fire .

This halwa can be served warm or cold .

About the recipe

Carrot halwa an Indian dessert,is a dish no one

can resist.It is made by grating carrots and

cooking with sugar,milk,ghee,nuts and cooked

to perfection.

I have posted many variations of this carrot

halwa,carrot kesari in my previous posts.

This recipe is another unique recipe with lotus

seeds.

Lotus seeds are mostly used in the making of

Chinese desserts and Asian cuisines.

In Indian cuisine lotus seeds are used in sweet

and savoury dishes.

Lotus seeds are of nutritive value,and this

recipe with carrots is no doubt a healthy recipe.

Do try this innovation of mine,and post in your

feedback .



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BEETROOT,BADAM BURFI

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Red,red burfi !Lovely colour,lovely taste.

Combined taste of cashew katli,coconut burfi ,

milk peda, and very addictive in taste .

The goodness of beetroot combined,it is indeed

a healthy sweet .

So let’s get into the recipe right away!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup grated beetroot

2-3 tbsp ghee

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup milk

a handful of coarsely ground almonds.

1/2 cup powdered milk

3/4 cup desiccated coconut/ fresh coconut

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

1/4 tsp nutmeg powder

1/4 tsp salt

METHOD

•Add ghee to a thick bottomed pan/non stick .

•Add in the grated beetroot and let it cook till

liquid dries.

•Add in the sugar,and the other ingredients,

one by one.

• Keep mixing till all the ingredients combine

and form like one soft dough.(A little more time

needed than normal burfi)

•Transfer to a greased plate ,and allow to cool

till firm.( If you want immediate results,you

may keep it in the fridge for 10-15 minutes)

•Cut into desired shapes .

WHITE PUMPKIN WHEAT HALWA

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I ordered my weekly vegetables online,and I

normally receive cut slices of white pumpkin.

This time I received one whole pumpkin.

I think the pumpkin had too many of my stares,

and thoughts of what to do,as I didn’t have the

mood to cut it through.My mind for a weekend

dessert was something else , but here came a

power cut and as my oven is not connected to

the inverter,I had no option than to cut open

this pumpkin , and got ready to make a halwa

with it . Grated the vegetable…..after I finished

the power was back 😢.Whew!

Anyway no regrets as the dessert was amazing .

I have posted halwa recipes with this vegetable,

but this time there was an addition of wheat

flour and pistachio garnish .No colour , as I

wanted the pistachios to look contrasted to the

white colour.

To the recipe now

INGREDIENTS

300-400 gm white pumpkin grated

3/4 cup wheat flour

1 tsp cardamon powder

1/2 tsp nutmeg powder

3/4 cup ghee

1 cup sugar or to taste

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk / coconut milk

A handful of crushed pistachios

METHOD

Heat 1/4 cup ghee,and add the grated pumpkin.

Cook till it is partly dry and add the wheat flour

and mix well .

Keep mixing for 10 minutes adding 2-3 tsps of

ghee at intervals.

Add sugar and the rest of the ingredients,and

keep mixing till the mixture turns thick into

one lump.Keep adding the remaining ghee

gradually at intervals .

Transfer to a tray and top with pistachios .

Note : A question may arise why I didn’t

roast the flour first, and then add the

pumpkin.Had I roasted the flour the colour

would have changed light brown and the

taste would have been different . I wanted

the halwa to be white and the blend was

excellent!

Check link for my previous post on the same

Vegetable https://calinskitchen.com/2016/03/01/white-pumpkin-and-coconut-milk-halwa/

BEETROOT CASHEW KATLI

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Sweet stories in the air for Diwali, and thought

to share my new try ,a healthy nutritious sweet

which no one will resist .

I have tried many sweet and savoury recipes

with beetroot .

Even in the making of Red Velvet cake ,I avoid

using color and use only beetroot extract.

Now coming to katli,I tried this before by just

grinding the beetroot to a paste,but I did not get

the expected result.

This time I made the beetroot paste,spread it on

a parchment paper and baked for 15 minutes ,

switched off the oven and allowed to cool in the

oven itself (I used only 1 beetroot so the timing

is enough).

This method , tasted very good . the raw taste of

beetroot was absent,and the color was good.

So now let me share this recipe with you all.

INGREDIENTS

1 cup cashewnuts

1/2-3/4 cup sugar

1 beetroot ( follow instructions above)

A pinch of salt

1/4 tsp cardamons powder

2 – 3 tsp.ghee

1/4cup milk powder

1/8 cup water.METHOD

•Heat the sugar and water till 1 string

consistency .

•Add the finely ground cashewnuts,beetroot

puree,salt and mix on a low flame.

•Add the rest of the ingredients and mix till it

forms a like a ball of dough.

•Remove from fire and keep stirring with a

spatula .

•Transfer to a greased plate and slightly roll to

get a thin layer.

•Dab the silver vark on and cut into shapes you

like.

DATE AND NUT BARS

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This is a very healthy sweet .Those who don’t prefer the top baked crust can serve only the date and nut layer.Its a wholesome meal,for people who want to skip a meal.

INGREDIENTS

2 cup seedless dates (steamed for 20 mins)

2 cups almonds

1 cup coconut scrapings ( desiccated coconut

can be used)

2 tblsp. honey

1/2 tsp.cinammon powder

orange essence/ grated rind of 1 orange

Roast almonds.blend coarsely along with all

other ingredients.

For the oatmeal crust:

200 gm rolled oats

3/4 cup flour

150 gm butter

3/4 cup demerara sugar (brown sugar)

1/2 tsp.baking powder

1/8 tsp.ground cinammon

Pulse all these ingredients in a blender untill

crumbly and comes together.

Grease  a baking tray,and press half of the

crumble.

Spread the date mixture on the crust.

With the remaining crumble press to compact.

Bake in a moderate oven(180 degrees) for 20 to 25 mins.Cool.

Cover with a plastic wrap and place in a

refrigerator  for at least an hour so you can cut

firm and easy.

You could store this for a week in the

refrigerator.