Gajar Ka Halwa in Bengali Style

Today I will share a recipe which do not need any introduction, because it is one of the most authentic and traditionally followed recipe, which is prepared in every Indian household in special occasions such as Diwali, Rakshabanadhan, Dussehra, Teej and overall the grand festivals in India. I am talking about ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ a special sweet delight for every occasion. With just two more days to the special occasion of Rakshabandhan, here I present to you a super tasty and healthy recipe of Gajar Ka Halwa, as it is a special sweet delight and a dessert very close to my heart and also loved by my brother.

Hence, this year I prepared this easy and tasty recipe of Gajar Ka Halwa, which is also known as ‘Carrot Halwa’ made with minimal ingredients available at home as the current situation of the global lockdown has hit hard to supply and demands. We wait for this day to one of the most respected and awaited festivals of India Raksha Bandhan, a special day for the siblings and a day to treat the brothers with their favourite dishes. Gajar Ka Halwa is very popular recipe for the festive season. We also prepare other sweet desserts and other main dishes during this time. The festive vibes bring positivity and smile in everyone’s face along with beautiful, colorful Rakhis and traditional sweets everything becomes so much joyous.

Rakshabandhan is a special day for all the brothers and sisters, as they share a special bond of love and togetherness. We are four brother and sisters, every year we used to celebrate this festival with great joy and happiness. However, with time, our preferences and values changed over the years. This day of the year gets quite difficult for me and my siblings as we have been shuffling off wih time and places, and not been together sometimes over the past seven years now. And this year too, we sisters aren’t together to tie Rakhi to our one and only brother. Even then, we celebrate the day virtually by calling up several times a day and with advanced technology it has become so easy to bring us all together when we are staying far away.

Every year we sisters used to go shopping till late nights to buy Rakhi for our little brother, who is now a grown up boy:) The markets get so vibrantly bright with colorful dazzling rakhis all around. After we buy and get back home, we used to hide the rakhis so that it doesn’t come to the sight of our brother until the next morning, when we get fresh and wear traditional clothes to tie rakhi in his hand. Well that brings a lot of memory now, which is somewhere fading away with time, although our bond is so strong that we love and could do anything for each other. Coming to the recipe of the dessert I prepared is because ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ is one such dessert loved by everyone in my family and that is why I find different reasons to prepare this traditional delight with a little twist and turn.

Gajar Ka Halwa is a carrot based sweet delight made mainly using carrots, milk, ghee, sugar and lot of dry fruits. This traditional Indian dessert is very popular and mainly prepared during the festive season and most importantly in the winter season as well. This Gajorer Halowa recipe is prepared keeping the health factor in mind, as I have used low calorie ingredients and the rest of it such as ghee and sugar in sufficient amounts. Therefore, this dessert is not only healthy, but very much delicious. Head on to the full recipe with step-wise instructions and pictures, with a quick recipe video given below:

Carrot Halwa Recipe | Gajar Ka Halwa | Gajorer Halowa in Bengali Style

[Veg]

Author: Paromita.P

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes

Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes (approx)

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients:

Dry Fruits – half cup each
Bay leaf- 2
Elaichi (cardamom)- 4
Ghee (clarified butter)- 2 tbsp
Oil – 2 tbsp (optional)
Carrot- 4
Milk- 1.5 litre
Sugar – 2 cups (as per taste)

Tips:You can skip using bay leaf in order to prepare the basic Gajar ka Halwa.

Method:

How to prepare ‘Bengali Style Gajar Halwa’ with step by step pictures and instructions-

Peel and grate the carrots into fine slices.
This is how the grated carrot would look like.
Roughly chop the almonds and keep aside.
Heat a cooking wok, add 1 tbsp ghee and oil into it.
Slightly fry the dry fruits in low flame.
Dry fruits are fried till golden brown as shown in the pic. Keep them aside.
In the same wok, add 1 tbsp ghee, bay leaf and grated carrot.
Now pour in the milk, mix well and bring to a boil. Cover and cook for 10 minutes.
Once carrots are cooked add sugar and mix well. (add sugar depending upon the sweetness preferred)
Add half a cup of milk at this point, simmer in milk with cardamom until milk is evaporated.
Lastly add the fried dry fruits and stir continuously until liquid texture evaporates completely.
End product would appear to look as shown in the pic. Carrot retains its original colour.

Carrot Halwa Recipe Video

We Indians simply love different varieties of delicious foods and we strive hard to prepare every kind of delicacies during every festivals to make the occasion more joyous and enjoyable. Prepare this mouthwatering ‘Bengali Style Gajar Halwa’ in this upcoming festivals and tell me how you liked it. Hope this festive season brings us good health and lot of happiness. Stay Happy and Blessed. Enjoy cooking, serving and eating!!

Bengali Style Gajar Halwa

Gajar Ka Halwa in Bengali Style