CARROT-BEET HALWA !

Saint Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day falls on February 14.Here is my beautiful heart shaped Carrot-Beet Halwa(Pudding)for Meeta of 'whatsforlunchhoney's Monthly Mingle "Sweet Love" event.Thanks for hosting Meeta.



Well..love!!





A little word that enchants you into a different world and makes you feel that magical connection with someone, a feeling which makes you part of someone's life!!:))





Love..Arvind my husband, comes to mind who is my constant partner since we were teenagers and a long, mostly wonderful 20 yr old marriage.Did you read the "mostly" part?!:D
Heart..my two beautiful kiddies.My baby son is going to enjoy his last of Tween years this year to become a Teen next year!!
Sweet..My girl is going to be a "sweet 16" next month!!How sweet is that?!(Let's not talk about what she wants for her 17th Birthday now,shall we?;D)
How lucky am I to have them?! Touch wood!!


Too much sugar already! Before you reach for a paperbag to p...,here is my dish!:D

Carrot-Beet Halwa/Pudding! Serves 2 :)

A classic Punjabi(Indian)'Gajar Halwa'(Carrot pudding) which has been made into a popular dessert synonymous with "mom's love" by Bollywood movies,is a wonderful sweet.It's traditionally made by cooking grated Orange Carrots,sugar,Cardamom,almonds,raisins,cream or Khoya and butter to make it a sinfully delicious rich dessert!


Of course since I am cooking for Valentine's day,I made some changes by adding Beet and lot less cream to make it red and molded into a heart shape to celebrate "Sweet Love"!

What you need:
4 medium (fresh and young) Carrots,washed and cubed,1/2 beet peeled and cubed,1/4 cup (or to your taste) Brown sugar,1tbsp Cream or milk,pinch of salt,and 1 tsp Cornstarch.
1/2 tsp Cardamom pd. Almonds for garnish.2 tbsp unsalted butter.
How to make:
1. Blend all the above except Almonds,cardamom pd and butter to a coarse paste.
2. Melt butter in a heavy bottomed wide pan and add the ground mixture.
3. Cook on medium heat until soft and almost dry.Stir often to prevent sticking.
4. Sprinkle Cardamom pd and mix well.Fill it in a heart shaped mold and chill in the fridge until firm.Garnish with Almonds and serve at room teperature.

Note:
1. Traditional Gajar Halwa(Carrot Pudding) does not include Beet or Cornstarch.Carrots are grated and cooked with other ingredients including Raisins.
2. Adding cornstarch and grinding with Beet makes it red ,smooth and thick, to make it easy to mold for my dish shown above.
3. Gajar Halwa has more cream than this recipe which makes it orange-pink!I wanted a red color for this Valentine's day dish,so just added just a little cream than the usual.


A little History of Valentine's Day:

Valentine's day is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other with Valentine's cards and candy.The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.In the United States, the marketing of Valentine's Day has tagged it as a "Hallmark holiday"!(WIKI)More info here!


That's all folks.Have a wonderful Valentine's day!:))