I was watching a travel show in a Malayalam channel. The hostess takes the viewers through a culinary journey. In one episode, the recipe was Ashoka halwa and the cooking episode is shot at a normal house and cooked by the lady of that house. That aunty mentioned it was famous in Thiruvaiyar/Tanjore area. And its also called as Thiruvaiyar Halwa similar to the halwa of Tirunelveli. Ashoka halwa is made using moong dal and its lot simpler to make. Watching the episode, I was tempted to make it immediately and made a mental note of the ingredients and measurements. I have made it long time back and the recipe was missing in my book. The aunty who made it was mostly eyeballing the measurements. Considering her age, she must be quite experienced in making it and she doesn't need cups and spoons as we swear by. The hostess tried to get across the measurements partially in weight and cups.
This is how I went about doing it.
Moon dal - 1/2 cup
Sugar - 1 1/2 cups
Maida - 1/4 cup
Wheat flour -1/4 cup
Ghee- 1/2 cup
Caradamom powder - 1 tspn
Red food color - a pinch
Cashew nuts - 10 nos
Method
Dry roast the moong dal till light brown. I usually roast the dal before storing them. Wash and pressure cook in 1 1/2 cups of water for 2 whistles. Mash the cooked dal well. There will not be excess water in the cooked dal.
Heat a kadai with a tablespoon of ghee. Roast cashewnuts to golden brown. Drain them and roast both maida and wheat flour separately for few minutes. Keep them aside. In the same kadai, mix cooked and mashed dal and sugar. Heat the mixture. When it starts bubbling, slowly stir in both the flours and a pinch of red color. Add ghee at intervals. When the whole mixture comes together and starts leaving the sides, remove from fire. Add roasted cashewnuts and cardamom and give a good stir.
This halwa is not very sweet and with comparitively less amount of ghee used, its not dripping with ghee kind.
Am just drooling over the last pic, tempting halwa, mouthwatering here..
ReplyDeletenice yummy picture..and lovely colour too...am sure must have tasted awesome..
ReplyDeleteyummmy , pass here please :)
ReplyDeleteWe too make moong dal halwa, but this version is very different.
ReplyDeleteLooks mouthwatering Jayasree.I think I saw that episode too,Lakshmi Nair's show,right??
ReplyDeleteThanks Priya
ReplyDeleteSowmya, yes, it was very tasty.
Chitra, take that bowl.
Pari, Would like to see ur version. Do you have it in your blog?
Divya, you are right. I am unable to watch it regularly. So will catch it once in a while.
The halwa is in my to-make list since very long..winter is a good time to make and consume this isn't it?
ReplyDeleteI love halwa and love that it is less ghee and sugar.
ReplyDeleteI had this in awedding tiffin, had seen the recipe somewhere too. Never trid though, now the halwa's texture has tempted me. I am writing down the recipe. Will try asap.
ReplyDeleteI have tried this only once,my hubby's favorite:)
ReplyDeleteVery tempting halwa Jayshree. Nice pics.
ReplyDeleteThat's irresistible for a sweet lover like me ;-)
ReplyDeletevery tempting....must gice a try
ReplyDeleteThe halwa is tempting u ve made it perfectly!
ReplyDeleteI wish i could take out the halwa from the screen...it looks so tempting..thanks for the entry
ReplyDeleteYour halwa makes me nostalgic! Looks delicious!
ReplyDeleteOh lovely I love this sweet ...comes out quite easily right!
ReplyDeleteA very tasty and easily made sweet dish. Didn't know it was called Ashoka halwa.
ReplyDeleteHave heard about Asoka halwa,never knew the recipe.Love the clicks
ReplyDeleteLove Ashoka Halwa looks so delicious. Re Olan yes, my Sister's in laws are from Palghat so she cooks true kerala style.
ReplyDeleteWow...that's an simple, flavourful and yum halwa....
ReplyDeleteAshoka halwa sounds great, like the last pciture...yummilious.
ReplyDeleteinteresting recipe..never heard abt this sweet..coool
ReplyDeleteHi,nice....my fav sweet!!!
ReplyDeletehttp://tastytales.blogspot.com/