Beetroot Ka Halwa

Ingredients

Beetroot - 1 kg
Ghee (Clarified butter) - 1 cup (150gm)
Milk - 200ml
Sugar - 750gm
Fresh Cream - 200ml
Kismis (dried grapes) - 100gm
Cashew Nuts - 100gm
Powdered Elachi (Green Cardamom) - 1 tbsp
Borneo (edible) Camphor - a pinch


Statistics

Makes / serves - 10-12 servings of 100gm each
Total cooking time - 1 hour

Procedure

1. Wash, peel and grate the beetroots and keep them aside.
2. Heat the ghee in a thick walled vessel and fry cashewnuts till mildly brown. Take the cashews out and fry the kismis till they swell up. Keep them aside.
   
3. Add the grated beetroot to the ghee and fry on a low flame till the beetroot gets slightly tender.
4. Add milk, fried kismis and fresh cream to the pan and let the contents boil for about 10 minutes.
5. Add sugar to the pan and let it simmer till the the contents get together to form a "halwa"ish consistency.
6. Add the smoothly powdered Borneo camphor and elachi powder before turning the heat off.
   
7. Have it hot or let it cool for a while and serve it topped with the crunchy fried cashews.

My Tips

Add double cream if you can get some for a smoother consistency and replacing the beetroot with the same amount of carrot will give you Gaajar Ka Halwa.

Basundi

Ingredients

Almonds - 1 cup
Milk - 2 lts
Sugar - 1 cup
Chironji Seeds - 3 tbsp
Saffron - a pinch
Pistachio nuts - 10-15

Statistics

Makes / Serves - 8 cups
Total cooking time - 1 hour

Procedure

1. Soak almonds in water for few hours, remove the skin and grind them to paste saving a few for garnishing.
2. Bring milk to a boil simmering over low flame till it coats the back of the spoon. (Stirrrrrr Strirrrr and Stirr)
3. Dilute the almond paste with about half a cup of water or milk and stir it into the boiling milk.
   
4. Add sugar and saffron, cook till sugar is completely dissolved and chill.
   
5. Slice the almonds and pistachios, wash and strain the chironji for garnishing. Serve the Basundi chilled and garnished with the almonds, pista and chironji.
   

Besan Ka Laddoo

I cannot be termed a bonvivant but, I have always appreciated good food and drink in my life. Though there have been lots of instances in my life when I have had pointers that I am a good cook (good = better than worse) it is not until now that I have chosen to pursue cooking as an active hobby (let's see how long this one lasts) :). I have decided to make a sweet beginning to the new found interest so, armed with some basic recipe books and a little practical knowledge around the kitchen I set out to make Laddu. Laddu, the roundest, cutest and my most favorite of all Indian sweets. No Indian needs introduction to a Laddu. My fondness for Laddus (especially the Moti Choor ones) has lead me to nickname my girl friend Laddu also :) (not because she is round but, because she is sweet and I love her :) ). Today's recipe is one of the most common variants of a Laddu, the Besan (Gram Flour) Laddo.


Ingredients

Besan (Gram Flour) - 500gm
Ghee (Clarified Butter) - 125gm (about 1 cup)
Almonds - 32
Cashews - 32 (around 60 if not split)
Sugar Powder - 250gm
Ground Elachi (Green Cardamom) - 2 tbsp
Borneo (edible) Camphor - 2-3 gm (about a pinch)

Statistics

Makes / Serves - 50-55 pieces
Cooking Time - 25 minutes
Total Preparation Time - 1 hour

Procedure

1. Sieve the besan to get rid of lumps and air it up a bit. Melt Ghee in a pan and add Besan to it. Fry on low heat till the besan is nicely done and aromatic. Takes about 15-20 min.
   
2. Grind the almonds and cashews coarsely and add them to the pan along with the cardamom powder. Stir well and turn the heat off.
3. After the besan has cooled down enough to handle add powdered sugar along with the camphor and roll it into Laddus.

My Tips

• The Laddus prepared as above will be powdery and a little dry which is how I like them. If you like them a little softer then add a little more hot ghee before rolling them into Laddus.
• If you are one with a sweet tooth then adding a little crushed misri (rock candy) to the hot besan is recommended before step 2.
  
• For a better visual appeal you may soften the laddus as mentioned above and roll them in a separately prepared coarse mixture of ground almonds and cashews as a final touch.
  
• On long standing warming the laddus for 15-20 seconds in a microwave will soften them and give them a freshly made feel.