I love Suji halwa, simply adore it. You remember that halwa which we used to get during Navrati ? We had a small temple near our place where on every Naumi, they organised langar. That suji halwa was the best I have ever tasted in my life. I sincerely even asked the recipe to the person who used to make that. He said that the semolina has been roasted but not completely to get that course texture and they added Ghee twice the amount of semolina to the halwa. I tried that many times since then but never could get that taste. Even now, I sometimes crave for that same halwa. L
Getting pineapples in India had been tough for me. They were not available in small cities and even if we found them somewhere they were not completely ripen. Chopping them was a separate painstaking job. On a whole, I could only cherish this sweet fruit 3-4 times a year. But here since we get pineapples in abandon, I get them a lot in our weekly grocery. Tried pineapple cake once, and though it didn’t turn out soft and fluffy, at least held a good reasonable taste. This Pineapple kesari also I tried very first time on a lazy weekday afternoon while I was craving for something sweet yet healthy. Cooking this in Microwave made it even easier to prepare and less time consuming.
Ingredients:
1. 1 cup pineapple puree
2. 1 ½ cup semolina ( I used fine quality )
3. ½ cup ghee
4. ½ cup sugar ( You can increase or decrease according to your taste)
5. ¼ cup cashews + 1 tsp ghee
6. 4-5 strands of saffron dissolved in ¼ cup warm milk
7. ½ tsp Cardamom
8. 1 cup milk ( I used skimmed, but whole milk would be best for this )
9. 1 cup water
Method:
1. In a micro safe bowl, roast cashews in 1 tsp ghee for a min on high. Keep aside.
2. Combine semolina and ghee in the bowl and mix well. Micro it for 4 min on high.
3. Then take it out and stir. Again micro for 3-4 min. Repeat the process 4-5 times till the rava is roasted. Mine took 4 times. It will start giving aroma so you can check whether its roasted properly or not.
4. Add water and milk and give a nice stir to the mixture. Micro again for 3-4 min on high.
5. Finally pour in the Pineapple puree and sugar, mix well. Repeat the process of micro on high for 2 min for 3-4 times, each time giving it a nice stir. Keep a check it shoulg not get burnt from one side so keep stirring it well.
6. Add cardamom powder and saffron strands and fold into kesari. Micro for 2 min again on medium.
7. Garnish with roasted cashews.
Notes:
1. You can use more ghee for better taste and texture. Condensed milk can be used in place of whole milk for more creamy taste.
2. The process of taking out, stirring and then again micro it could be time taking but at least better than cooking it on gas. Less fuss and less work with same great taste.
Delicious Halwa,luks so tempting…
like it, like it………………