Carrot Halwa/ Gajar Ka Halwa

First post in 2014!!! So begining this with a sweet Dish..

A classic sweet recipe simple with no complex ingredients, just cook the carrots in milk, add sugar and garnish with nuts and ghee! Thats it!,Perfect to celebrate a sweet occasion !

Ingredients:-

Carrot, grated	3 heaped cups
Milk	2 & 1/4 cups
Sugar	3/4 – 1 cup
Ghee	3 – 5 tblsp
cardamom/elachi powder	A pinch (Optional)
Cashew	4 – 5
Pistachios(optional)	4-5

Method:-

• Cut the carrot into pieces and give them a turn in Mixie, until they turn mushy.
• Add the milk and bring to boil,cook in medium flame.
• Cook till all the milk evaporates and the carrot gets cooked .
• When the mixture is almost dry,add the sugar and keep on stirring.(7-10 minutes)
• When the mixture starts thickening,add ghee,elachi,cashews and pistachios fried in ghee.
• Keep stirring for more 3-4 minutes.
• When the halwa starts leaving the sides and transfer this to the serving plate.
• Garnish with your favourite nuts,sliced and fried in ghee!

Notes:-

You can add less ghee than mentioned.

You can follow the same method and make beetroot halwa. Just replace carrot with beetroot !

 

Carrot Upperi

Ingredients:
Carrot - 1 kg

Grated/shredded coconut - Thuriviya thengai - 1/2 Cup
Mustard - Kadugu - 1 tea spoon
Cumin seeds - Jeeragam - 1 tea spoon
Red chillies - Kaintha milagai - 3 nos.
Black gram dal - Ulutham paruppu - 1 table spoon
Curry leaves - Karuvepilai - small quantity
Asafoetida - Perungayam - a pinch
Salt to taste
Oil for frying
Onion- 2 Medium Size

Method:

1. Wash and peel off the skin from vegetables and boil it till it becomes soft.
2. Heat oil in a pan/kadai, splutter mustard seeds, cumin seeds, black gram dal, red chillies, curry leaves, asafoetida .
3. Add the sliced onion and grated coconut. Now add boiled vegetable to it. Add little salt. Mix them well.

Carrot Thoran is ready to be served. Serve it with any rice varieties.

You can use any vegetables in place of Carrot. I usually make Cabbage Thoran, beans thoran like this.

Carrot Rice

This is a simple rice preparation that needs only minutes to make..I mean only few minutes..It can be made from start to finish in less than 15 mins and ofcourse you should have your rice cooked readily for this..You can use up left over rice from the previous batch too..

Ingredients:

Rice – 3 cups cooked (any rice)

Carrot – 3 medium size grated

Onion -1 finely chopped

Curry leaves – 1 spring

Green Chilli – 2 chopped

Channa Dal / Kadalai Paruppu – 1 tsp

Mustard Seeds / Kaduku – 1 tsp

Cumin seeds / Jeerakam – 1tsp

Sesame Seeds / Yellu – 1 tblspn

Peanuts / Ver kadalai – 1 tblspn

Dry Red Chilli – 1

Cinnamon / Pattai – 1 inch piece

Cardamom / Yelakai - 4

Salt to taste

Ghee – 2 tblspn

Method:

Heat ghee in a kadai. Add mustard, cumin, peanuts, sesame seeds, channa dal, cinnamon, cardamom, dry red chilli. Fry this for a min untill they turn golden.

Now add onions, green chilli and salt and fry for 1 min.

Add grated carrots and toss well..Stir fry this for 5 mins..

Add in cooked rice and toss well..

Serve with any side dish or papad..