The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach and maybe that is why a lot of us ladies will be making chocolates and everything sweet for our beloved ones for Valentine’s day.
But the way to MY man’s heart if through his stomach is not with chocolates nor cookies but with “desi treats” (Indian sweets) and so I am making his favourite Indian dessert – gajrela or “gajar ka halwa” this Valentine’s day. My children benefit from this as well; they have been introduced to gajrela as toddlers and have grown to love this healthy dessert packed with so many vitamins from carrots and nuts.
A simple dessert to kindle using ingredients available in every household and about an hour of preparation, is a dessert that always delights everyone.
So If you have a desi boy to impress, like I do…this is what your V day should be made of!!! Let’s begin…
Ingredients :-
- 4-5 or 1kg carrots, grated*
- 600ml fresh milk
- ½ tin condensed milk or sugar, according to taste
- 2 large serving spoons ghee
- 4-5 almonds, soaked and thinly sliced
- 4-5 cashew nuts, thinly sliced
*Carrots – In India, you get red carrots and with those you will get just the right colour for Gajrela. I am using orange carrots and have not added any colouring.
Method: –
- In a wide pan, put in the grated carrots and milk. Set on high.
- Wait for the milk to boil before you give it a stir.
- Once the milk has come to a boil, turn heat to low, and cook until the milk dries up. This takes about 45minutes to an hour. Stir occasionally.
- 30minutes along the way – add in ghee and condense milk. Add both little by little and adjust after tasting.
- Once all the milk has dried up turn off the heat. Serve hot topped with sliced almonds and cashew nuts or any other dried fruit of your choice.
Enjoy!!!