Moong Dal Halwa – Guest Post by Aruna Panangipally of Aharam

Today I am sharing my very first guest post with you all and I am very delighted that it is from a person, whom I adore for her Andhra/traditional recipes πŸ™‚ The first time I saw Aruna Panangipally’s blog – Aharam, it gave me a wonderful homely feel and when I browsed through her recipes, I felt I was home πŸ™‚ You will find a lot of Andhra special and festival recipes in her blog with a very detailed explanation (wish I had her patience :P).Β The best part of Aharam is if there is a festival coming,Β she makes your job easier by sharing the related recipes, so do check out her space πŸ™‚ πŸ™‚

Today’s guest recipe from her is – Moong Dal Halwa. This recipe is something new to me, so I was looking forward for this recipe, which in her own words….

In Aruna’s words...

I fell in love with Moong Dal Halwa at Govinda’s, the restaurant at ISKCON, Juhu, Mumbai. In fact, all the food at Govinda’s is truly Prasadam, not only because it is offered to Lord Sri Krishna but also because it is simply divine in taste as well. You will find an extensive buffet with dishes to suit every taste and from a variety of Indian and international cuisines. The best part is that all the food is pure vegetarian and satvic.

When I was thinking of which dish to make for Poojita as a Guest Post; I was suddenly struck by the fact that this is was Dhanur (Marghazi) Maasam, which is considered auspicious for Maha Vishnu. For some reason, at that instant, I thought of ISKCON and its Moong Dal Halwa, and so came about this post.

Moong Dal Halwa - 1

Serves: 4

Preparation Time: 6 to 8 Hours

Cooking Time: 60-75 Minutes

Ingredients

  1. Moong Dal – 1 Cup
  2. Ghee – Β½ Cup + 2 tbsp
  3. Milk – 1 Cup + 2 tbsp
  4. Sugar – 1 Cup
  5. Saffron – 6 to 8 strands
  6. Cashew – 8
  7. Almonds – 8
  8. Green Cardamom – 4

Preparing the Moong Dal Paste

  1. Wash the Moong Dal well and soak in 2 cups water for 6 to 8 hours.
  2. After the Moong Dal is soaked, drain all the water.
  3. Wash well.
  4. In as little water as possible, grind the moong dal to a coarse paste (idli batter consistency).

Other Preparations

  1. Peel the green cardamom.
  2. Crush the cardamom seeds to a coarse powder. I find that adding 1 tsp of sugar to the seeds helps in crushing them easily.
  3. Warm 2 tbsp milk and soak the saffron in it.
  4. Split the cashews.
  5. Chop the almonds to long slivers.

Method to Make the Halwa

  1. In a heavy bottomed kadhai or vessel, over medium-heat, melt Β½ cup ghee.
  2. Add the Moong Dal paste to the melted ghee.
  3. Mix well.
  4. Stir-fry till the Moong Dal paste starts to turn golden brown and loses the raw taste.
  5. Add sugar and mix well.
  6. Add 1 cup milk and mix well.
  7. Cook till the milk is fully absorbed and the ghee starts to appear at the outer edges of the halwa. Mix well every 2-3 minutes.
  8. Add the cardamom powder and saffron soaked in milk.
  9. Mix well.
  10. Turn off the heat.
  11. In a ladle, melt 2 tbsp ghee.
  12. Add the cashew and almond pieces.
  13. Fry till the start to turn brown.
  14. Add the fried dry-fruit along with the ghee to the halwa.
  15. Enjoy!

 

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4 Comments

  1. Hi Poojita,

    Thank you for your generous praise and I am honoured that mine is the first guest post on your blog. πŸ™‚ While I tend to stick to traditional recipes, what I admire about you is the unique twist that you impart to many of your recipes.

    I look forward to learning from you and walking this culinary journey with you.

    Here is wishing you and all of yours a fantastic 2015!

    • Hi Aruna,
      It is wonderful knowing you here in my food blogging journey πŸ™‚ Truely, I have searched your blog numerous times for typical festival recipes πŸ˜€ Thank you so much for the wishes and kind words about me. I wish you and your family too a very happy and successful 2015 πŸ™‚

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