Quick Gajar ka Halwa|Carrot pudding|Festival sweets

Today is technically speaking,"Husbands day" for all Indian married women especially North Indian women as today is one of the famous Hindu festival "Karwa Chauth",a festival dedicated to husbands in short.The day when all married women observe from dawn to dusk strict fast of no food,no water and pray to almighty for their husband's long life and total well-being .This day once again the married women adorn themselves as a bride clad in beautiful sarees/bridal costume,loads of jewelery ,mehendi/henna on their hands & legs,bindi on their forehead,Sindoor/Vermilion on their head (in parting of the hair),beautiful makeup on her face,heart full of prayers for her spouse,stomach growling but she ignoring happily,lips smiling,face glowing ,in short sizzling like a pretty bride ALL FOR HER BETTER HALF :).

Finely Chopped carrots

The fasting she happily undertakes is broken only at night after seeing the moon through a sieve directly or in a water as a reflection and offering prayers later on and she literally starts eating the first bite fed by her dear husband lovingly . Sweet !!:) A day for husbands indeed :).

I certainly ,like other festivals love this festival but still I am not a big fan .First of all, I can't imagine the plight of those women who unfortunately don't get to see the moon that day by chance and that means an ill omen ,inauspicious for her husband.Secondly,I believe women are already doing loads of sacrifice ((read) as her pure love & genuine responsibility) for their family by hook or by crook,more than anyone in the family .Doesn't that imply how loving,responsible ,sacrificing she is already? Does she have to observe a fast from day to night without any food or a drop of water to prove her love for her family,her spouse ?

I would have loved it if there was a wife day as well like a "Men"wa chauth something lol :P..excuse me ;D...I mean there are husbands who don't even remember their wedding days ,their wife's birthdays ...Anyways,it's all beliefs,customs and part of our culture as a reminder ,rejuvenating the sacred bond I believe but if you ask me how I celebrate this day,then for me every day is a Karwa chauth sans any fasting but the most important thing wholehearted prayer to almighty for my man's long life and prosperity forever ..That's my ideal Karwa Chauth infact :).

Anyways, since it's a whole day fasting for women there's a lot of celebration in between to keep her occupied, loads of delicacies are prepared for the day and even though I don't celebrate it, I certainly prepared one such popular Indian sweet pudding,"Gajar ka Halwa" , made up of grated carrots, milk, sugar, ghee (Clarified butter). It is rich , yummy and also a nutritious dessert .This is a very simple version but the best for me.Really apt for people who do festival fasting.

This dessert is so popular in India that in most of the Bollywood movies this delicacy is a celebrity of the dessert kingdom there:D..All Indians can recall those hilarious line by all amma/moms in the movie,"Aaja beta ,maine aaj tere pasand ka gajar ka halwa banaya hai"/"Son,I've prepared your favorite dessert,Gajar ka halwa for you" :D.

 Gajar ka Halwa

Ingredients

Fresh Carrot , grated - 3 cups
Milk - 3 cups (Preferably whole fat for richness)
Sugar - 1 cup
Cardamom Powder - 1/4 teaspoon
Raisins and Cahewnuts - a few (10-20)
Ghee (Clarified butter) - 1/2 cup

Preparation Method:

Watch me how to make an easy gajar ka halwa in the video below :
 

• Wash, peel and grate the carrots using any grater or I used my mini chopper that just chops it finely just the way I want it.
• Pressure cook the grated carrots, milk and sugar together for one whistle.
• Turn the flame off and once the steam escapes completely & cooker calms/cools down, open the lid carefully.
• Now put it on medium flame , stirring now and then until all liquid/milk evaporates.
• Now heat a wide pan with ghee, fry raisins and cashew nuts till light brown.
• Now transfer everything from the pressure cooker into the above pan.
• On medium-low flame keep on stirring until everything mixes well  & finally ,starts leaving the edge of the pan,for say 10-15 minutes approx.
• Add cardamom powder to it. Give a final stir.
• Transfer it to a plate greased with ghee & allow it to cool.
• Quick Gajar ka Halwa is ready to serve.
• Decorate it with raisins and cashewnuts.

Note:

1. I used pressure cooker to make the halwa fast,saves lots of time when compared to making it in a pan directly.
2. Once the halwa cools down, I kept it in the freezer to harden them a bit and then used cookie cutter to cut it into diamond shapes.
3. Adjust the sugar as per your sweet tooth and adjust ghee to keep it as it is or to increase richness.
   

Happy Karwa Chauth to all married women out there !Hope your married life will be just like this gajar ka halwa-rich ,yummy ,may your sindoor on your hair be as vibrant and colorful as this carrots forever......

Reminds me that Bollywood song from ,"Hum Dil de chukey Sanam"

Chand Chupa Badal Mein, Sharma Ke Meri Jaana ,(ofcourse she is looking that beautiful afterall)
Seene Se Lag Ja Tu, Balkha Ke meri Jaana,(She is looking forward to)
Gumsum Sa Hai, Gupchup Sa Hai
Madhosh Hai,Khamosh Hai, (Hogi hi na because of the fasting yaar,jaanam samjha karo )
Haan Ye Sama, Haan Ye Sama Kuch Aur Hai, ..(Bilkul ye Karwa Chauth jo hai ) :D

(Ok jokes apart,let's get serious)

Aaja Re Aaja Re Chanda,

Ki Jab Tak Tu Na Aayega, Sajana Ke Chere To Dekhne Ye Man Tarsa Jayega,
Pyaar To Naam Hai, Sabra Ka Humdam
Aaja Re Aaja Re Chanda,Tu Laakh Duayen Payega...

Those few lines here and there sums it up :))

God bless you all lovely ladies & their lucky halves,