Receta Rajasthani Badam Halwa (Almond Pudding for ICC)
For this month's Indian Cooking Challenge, Valli gave us Vaishali's recipe for Badam Halwa/ Almond Pudding. My mom makes awesome badam burfi, but I have never tried badam halwa before, so I really wanted to make it before the deadline. I knew I had some whole almonds in the freezer and this is a great recipe to use them up before I go buying for more. Holiday season is a great time to stock up on nuts, flour & sugar since many of the stores have them on deep discounts. So if you have the pantry space, then this is the right time to go shopping for dessert & baking staples :-)
Sorry, I digressed. Coming back to this amazingly delicious badam halwa. Recipe had clear instructions to use non-stick pan to avoid sticking, so I used by brand new ceramic coated pan that I bought from India and it worked like a charm.
This is a rich and decadent dessert. My husband, my 2 year old and I have been eating a spoonful everyday and saving the rest for the next day because we don't want to get over -- it is that good. With just a few ingredients this is sure to be a hit with anyone. Thank you Valli & Vaishali for choosing this easy & yummy treat.
Ingredients:
- Almonds - ½cup
- Sugar - ½cup (adjust as per taste)
- Milk - ~½cup
- Ghee - ¼cup
- Ground Cardamom - ¼tsp
Method:
Soak almonds in water overnight. In the morning, remove the peel and grind them along with just enough milk to make a smooth paste.
Melt ghee in a nonstick pan, add the ground almond paste and cook on medium-low flame until the mixture turns pinkish and gets fragrant, about 12~15 minutes. There is a change in the consistency of almond paste -- it starts off being smooth and silky, but the mixture becomes slightly crumbly and dry.
Add the milk, sugar and ground cardamom. Stir well and cook till the ghee starts to ooze out from the sides, this take another 10~12 minutes. Serve hot, cold or at room temperature.