Walnut Halwa

Walnut Halwa, a nutty, decadent and delicate dessert one can enjoy on a cold winter day with a cup of tea!

I am a spice lover, I prefer spicy dishes over desserts, but this Walnut Halwa is my weakness. It was moons ago, the first time I heard about this dish, it was my cousin’s housewarming pooja ( a religious ceremony) my mum had it and raved about it. I had no idea how to make this dish, but after a considerable lengthy discussion with mum, I recreated this recipe.

I love making this Walnut Halwa especially in winters because walnuts are high in fats, they keep the body warm, and quite frankly it is such a delightful combination, this halwa with a cup of hot tea or coffee.

I love pairing this Walnut Halwa with simple Vanilla Ice Cream like New Zealand Natural Ice Creams.

I love making this Walnut Halwa with homemade evaporated milk, milk powder and some warm winter spices. I guarantee your house will smell heavenly.

In my recent party, I garnished this Walnut Halwa with Pomegranate Molasses reduction sauce. I will share that recipe in a new post soon.

If you like winter desserts the check this Gajar Halwa out!

Try this Walnut Halwa this winter and enjoy it with a hot cuppa!

Ingredients:

• 2 ¾ cups coarsely ground walnuts. (265 g whole walnuts).
• 50g chopped walnuts
• 2 tbsp ghee 
• 500 ml milk reduced in half. See instructions below.
• 1 ⅓ cup milk for later
• ¾ cup cream
• 1 ½ cup milk powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 tsp cardamom powder
• ¼ tsp nutmeg powder (Optional) 
• ¼ tsp saffron 
• Chopped walnut and desiccated coconut for garnishing. Optional.

Instructions:

• In a heavy saucepot start boiling milk on a medium flame. Keep stirring, so it doesn’t stick to the bottom. Reduce the milk to half its quantity. Turn the gas off and keep it aside.
• In heavy pot heat ghee on low, medium flame. Sauté the coarsely ground and chopped walnut mix till light golden. Please keep an eye as it burns very quickly.
• Now add in the reduced milk to this mixture and mix it very well. Fry this mixture for 3-5 minutes and add in the milk powder. Mix quickly, making sure there are no lumps. You might want to switch to a whisk. Now fry it till all the milk is evaporated.
• Now add in the cream and 1 cup milk. Add in the cardamom powder, nutmeg powder and saffron.
  Mix it well and again cook this mixture till all the milk is evaporated. Keep stirring the mixture with a spoon to get to this stage. When you touch the mix, it shouldn’t stick to your finger.
• Now add in the sugar and 1/3 cup milk. Mix it well and cook it till the mixture is glossy. If you want a really firm consistency, then cook this mixture till it doesn’t stick to your finger, or little sticky is ideal if you wish to a softer texture. When it is done, take it off the heat and transfer it to another bowl or it will become too hard.
• Garnish it with chopped walnuts and desiccated coconut.  Serve warm! Enjoy!!