Carrot And Coconut Halwa

Halwa is a popular sweet across India, the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe. There are different types of halwa. Some use flour or nut butters as a base but my all time favourite are the halwa that use carrots, pumpkins or yams (sweet potato).

Over the weekend I was looking for something to accompany my large mug of tea and decided it was time to try Gordon Ramsay’s recipe for carrot and coconut halwa.

It ended up being a bit more labour intensive for me then I would have liked for a Sunday afternoon but as I sit here tucking into my 3rd halwa of the day I am delighted I made the effort.

The main work is grating all the carrots. After working my way through 1kg of carrots I made the decision to halve the recipe. I was seriously in danger of never wanting to see another carrot again. (I halved everything but the toasted pistachios and almonds but strangely I still ended up with 20 halwa)

Once the grating is done the recipe is easy but you do need time to let everything cook down. My timing was off somewhere as it took me almost triple the amount of time and still the liquid hadn’t completely evaporated. It hasn’t affected the taste or texture of the halwa though so I must have done something right.

If you have never tried halwa please do give it a try. It really is a wonderful delicacy and with all those carrots it has to be good for you!

Here is Gordon Ramsay’s recipe from his book World Kitchen

Carrot and Coconut Halwa (makes 18-20)

Ingredients

2kg carrot, peeled

500ml evaporated milk

500g granulated sugar

50g unsalted butter

2 cardamom pods, seeds extracted and finely crushed

25g toasted pistachio nuts, finely chopped

25g toasted almonds, finely chopped

50g desiccated coconut, lightly toasted

Directions

Coarsely grate the carrots and put them into a large heavy-based sauce pan with the evaporated milk and granulated sugar

Bring to the boil and then lower the heat to a simmer

Cook for 35-45 minutes, stirring frequently, until all the milk has evaporated and the carrot is quite dry (This didn’t happen for me)

Add the butter to the sauce pan and increase the heat slightly to roast the grated carrots (my carrots ended up being stewed rather than roasted)

Cook for a further 25-30 minutes, stirring frequently, until the mixture is dry

When it leaves the sides of the pan clean, take off the heat and stir in the crushed cardamom seeds and chopped nuts

Transfer the mixture to a wide dish and leave to cool completely, then chill for at least an hour to allow it to firm up more

With wet hands, roll the mixture into neat round balls, then roll each ball in the toasted coconut to coat all over

The halwa are now ready to serve

They will keep in a sealed container in the fridge for up to a week

Enjoy!

If you don’t have a copy of Gordon Ramsay’s World Kitchen I highly recommend it. There are a wide variety of inspirational dishes from around the world. The photos by Chris Terry are stunning and the recipes are easy to follow.