Nendran Banana Halwa

Nendran Banana Halwa / Kerala Banana Halwa 
Nendran Banana Halwa is a kerala recipe, as nendran is available in plenty only in kerala. It is good for health and is a tasty recipe. Recently when we went to Kozhikode we saw vendors selling nendran halwa in railway stations. We tried it, it was nice. At that time I decided to make this nendran halwa recipe. I tried recently and it came out very well. You can also try this and enjoy.

Come let us see how to make Nendran Banana Halwa
Preparation time - 15 minutes
Cooking time - 45 minutes
Yield - 16 pieces
Ingredients:
Nendran banana - 4
Sugar - 1 cup + 2 tablsp
Ghee - ¼ cup
Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp
Cashew - 10
Method:
Select black skin nendran banana. Peel the skin. Chop into round slices.

Grind it in the mixie. Heat little ghee in a pan and fry cashews. Remove and keep aside.

In the same pan add banana pulp and sauté few minutes. Add sugar and stir it dissolves. Add ghee in between.

 Add cashew and cardamom when ghee oozes out from the halwa. When the halwa comes to thick mass,

Pour it in the ghee greased tray. Cut in to slices when it is cool.

 Garnish with cashew and serve.

Note:
Add any nuts of your choice.
Adjust sugar according to your taste.
It is good for two days in room temperature. After that you can refrigerate and use.

Custard Powder Halwa Recipe

Custard Powder Halwa / How to make Custard powder Halwa
Custard powder halwa is a very easy recipe. Even beginners can  make it just like that. I saw this halwa recipe in some food blogs. So i decided to make this halwa recipe for this year diwali sweet recipes.I made this halwa three months back for diwali sweet recipes. The taste was very good. Now its a time to post.

Let us see how to make Custard powder Halwa
Here is the quick video

Preparation Time - 20 minutes
Cooking time - 20 minutes
Serves -
Ingredients:
Custard powder - ½ cup
Sugar - 1 ½ cup
Water - 2 cup
Ghee - 2 tablsp + 1 tsp for greasing
Cashew nut - 6 broken
Cardamom powder - pinch
Method:
 Add sugar, custard powder and water in a non- stick pan and stir well with stirrer till the sugar dissolves.

Then put the pan in the stove and start cooking in the medium flame. Stir continuously. Add ghee in between.

The mixture leaves the sides of the pan add cardamom powder and cashews and mix well. Halwa comes to transparent Stage you can switch off the stove.

Grease a plate or tray with ghee. Pour it on the greased tray. Keep it for one hour then invert the tray in the plate and cut in to squares.

Garnish with cashews.

Note:
It will be good for two days in the room temperature. After two days you can refrigerate.
Add nuts of your choice.
Stir continuously to avoid lumps.
First you can mix it well without lumps then you can put it in the stove.
I used vanilla custard powder so I did not add any essence. If you want you can add any essence of your choice.

Kasi Halwa

Kasi Halwa
Kasi Halwa is a sweet made out of Poosanikai (Ash gourd or White Pumpkin). It is easy to make and nice to taste. As it is made of ash gourd it is nutritious and especially for those who do not like vegetables, this helps them take vegetables.
Kasi Halwa can be made with some variations by including some nuts and dry fruits too. It can serve as a good and handy sweet recipe especially when you need a nutritious sweet recipe. It is suitable for both festivals and functions. Kasi Halwa is an easy Halwa.

Here is the quick video

Kasi Halwa Ingredients:
Pumpkin Grated        - 1 cup
Sugar - ½ cup
Cashew - 6
Cardamom powder - 2 pinch
Orange colour - 2 pinch
Ghee       - 2 tblsp
Kasi Halwa Method:
Peel the skin and discard the seeds. Then grate in the grater.

Heat ghee in a pan and fry cashew and keep aside. In the same pan add grated poosanikai and saute till the raw smell goes.

Cover the pan with a lid and cook. Add sugar when the poosanikai is cooked well. Add colour and cardamom powder also.

Keep on stirring when the sugar dissolves and halwa oozes out ghee.

Finally add roasted cashew and serve.

Note:
Squeeze pumpkin and Keep the juice, don’t throw away. Saute pumpkin in the ghee and add the juice when the raw smell goes.
If you add sugar at the begining , Pumpkin will not get cooked well.

Milk Halwa

Some years back we went to Madhura. There people offered milk sweets like Milk Peda, Milk Halwa to lord Krishna. Krishna likes milk, curd, butter and milk sweets. So I made milk halwa and offered to Krishna.

Milk Halwa Ingredients:
Milk - 1 ½ litre
Sugar - 1/3 cup
Ghee - 2 tsp
Cardamom - 1 pinch
Pista - 4
Badam - 4
Citric acid - 2 pinch
Saffron - few strands
Milk Halwa Method:
Boil milk in a heavy bottomed vessel till it reaches thick consistency. Then add sugar and cook till it melts.

Add citric acid. Milk will curdle and the water oozes out. Stir continue till the water evaporate and milk reaches halwa stage.

 In this stage add ghee and cardamom powder and stir well. Grate pista and badam.

Garnish with pista, badam and saffron.

Note:
If you have citric acid you can add, or else leave it.

Beetroot Halwa

Beetroot is a good vegetable for women and growing children. Naturally beetroot is sweet in taste. In Some countries they take sugar from beetroot. Regular intake of beetroot can improve the hemoglobin level. Beetroot is a great source of nitrates. Eating vegetables rich in nitrates could help to reduce blood pressure.
Beetroot contains large amounts of soluble fibers, flavanoids and betacyanin. Betacyanin gives beetroot its purplish-red colour. Beetroot is a good anti oxidant. It helps to reduce the oxidation of LDL cholesterol and does not allow it to deposit on the walls of the artery. This protects the heart from heart attacks and stroke and reduces the need for medication. Beetroots are packed with fiber and act as great natural laxatives. So it helps to reduce constipation. Regular intake of beetroot boosts brain power and gives energy.

Beetroot Halwa Ingredients:
Beetroot        - 250 gms

Sugar - 130 Gms (1/2 cup)
Milk        - 250 ml
Cashew - 6
Pista         - 4
Badam - 4
Ghee - 5 tblsp
Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp

Beetroot Halwa Method:
Peel and grate the beetroot. Heat Ghee in a Pan and fry grated beetroot. Saute beetroot till its raw smell goes.

Add milk and sugar and stir well.

Cook till done. Grate the nuts in the grater.

 Heat little ghee in the frying pan and fry the grated nuts.

Finally add cardamom powder and fried nuts.

Note:
Cook the beetroot in the pressure cooker also.
Beetroot is sweet in taste, so you can add sugar according to the taste.
Add milkmaid instead of milk and sugar.

Nellikkai Halwa / jam (Gooseberry / Amla Halwa)

When summer approaches it is time for exams and the ensuing vacation. Likewise many new arrivals also come as ingredients into kitchen. The ingredients which come during or on the beginning of summer are Baby Mango or Maavadu, Neem flowers, Nellikai (Amla), etc.
Recently  When my mother went to our native place. she brought huge quantity of Nellikai from our native house at  Chettinad in Sivagangai district. There we have huge Nelli Maram which is about 10 years old. This year it has produced numerous fruits and almost all are in good ripe fruit stage. My mother brought them to me at Chennai.
Though Amla is considered nutritious many find it difficult to consume them especially when it is unripe. It is very sour and no one can take more than one or two. Today we will see some easy, useful and tasty recipes out of this Nellikai.
Already we have seen Maavadu Pickles and soon we will see some more recipes in Neem flower too –Veppam Poo.
Coming to Nellikai we will see five recipes which are suitable for the ensuing summer.
1. Nellikai Syrup – Amla Juice

2. Nellikai Halwa
3. Nellikai Thokku
4. Nellikkai Thogayal
5. Nellikkai Pachadi                                                                                                                                            
All these five are easy to make nice to taste and highly nutritious. You can make these compulsory to your family members so that the summer will not bother much and you can leave the choice to them to choose from the above five according to their taste buds.
                                                               
Nellikkai Halwa / Jam Ingredients:
Nellikkai          - 20

Sugar - 1 cup
Ghee - 2 tblsp
Badam - 8











Nellikkai Halwa / Jam Method:
Steam  cook Nellikkai in the idli pan. Remove the seed.

 Grind it in the mixie finely.

Heat ghee in a frying pan and add ground nellikkai and sauté. Add sugar and stir well.

When nellikkai reaches the halwa stage switch off the stove.

  Heat little ghee in a frying pan and add badam and fry.

Add badam to the halwa and serve.
Note:
You can add ¼ tsp cardamom powder also.
You can add whatever nuts you like.
If you want to  make jam You can add nellikkai and sugar only.

Carrot Halwa – Kajar Ka Halwa

Carrot halwa is a good and healthy sweet. It is a good dessert also. I often made this for naivedyam. Carrot is good for eyes. It is a good anti oxidant also. Carrot is good for growing childrens.

Let us the recipe

Carrot Halwa – Kajar Ka Halwa Ingredients:
Carrot - 500 gms

Sugar - 250 Gms
Milk       - 250 ml
Cashew - 10
Ghee - 5 tblsp
Cardamom powder - ¼ tsp

Carrot Halwa – Kajar Ka Halwa Method:
Peel and grate the carrot. Heat Ghee in a Pan and fry the cashews. Take the cashews out and keep aside.

 Add grated carrot in the remaining ghee and sauté for about five minutes. Add milk and sugar and stir well.

 Cook till done.

Finally add cardamom powder and fried cashews. Serve hot with or without ice cream.

Note: 
You can cook the carrot in the pressure cooker also.
Add grated badam and pista also.
I used Delhi carrot.
You can add milkmaid instead of milk and sugar.