Gajar Halwa is Indian Carrot Almond Pudding. This delicious dessert is often made during winter months and to celebrate big festivals like Diwali and Holi. It is ultimate comfort food - soothing, rich and delightful. Carrot halwa is made by slow cooking grated carrots with milk and sugar and flavored with cardamom.
Speaking of Indian desserts, we also love Vegan Coconut Rice Kheer and Vegan Tapioca Pudding both of which are so easy to make in Instant Pot. This Indian carrot pudding is also my childhood favorite.
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What is Carrot Halwa ?
Gajar is Indian term for carrots. Halwa is Indian sweet or dessert which under broad category covers variety of different dishes. Halwa is like a pudding made by reducing milk to thick consistency. So gajar halwa is Indian carrot pudding. In this vegan version, I am using almond milk to replace regular milk so let's call it Carrot Almond Pudding.
Perfect Fall / Winter Dessert
There’s always something special about cooked carrots and soothing warm spices. The glowing orange color adds its extra charm to the comfort quotient. If you love sweet treats and are looking to keep your healthy eating habits in tact, you will want to make this Carrot Almond Pudding. Lots of carrots and lots of almonds.
In India, Gajar ka Halwa is traditionally made in winter months. Carrots are in season in December -January and they are their best in terms of color and taste. So making the decadent dessert out of it helps celebration of seasonal produce.
Now carrots are available all year round so you can make it any time you crave the homestyle soul food. Instant Pot Gajar Halwa is my kids favorite carrot pudding and I love feeding them wholesome treat full of healthy ingredients.
You will love this Recipe
- It is vegan
- Glutenfree
- Full of wholesome ingredients
- Easy to make
- Ultimate comforting and satisfying
Ingredients
In this vegan and gluten free version, I am using coconut oil instead of ghee, almond milk and almond meal instead of regular milk and milk powder. The warm spices, earthy flavors and sweet carrots are so refreshingly delectable. You will Fall in love with this fall color dessert.
- Coconut oil : replaces traditionally used ghee
- Grated carrots : Use tender and fresh carrots. For ease and convenience, use a food processor instead of manually grating the carrots.
- Almond milk - choose non flavored variety
- Sweetener : I am using raw sugar
- Almond powder or almond meal : replaces traditionally used milk powder or Mawa / khoya. It adds a nice grainy texture and helps bulk up the halwa.
- Cardamom powder : A must have for Indian sweet desserts
- Optional Garnishes : Sliced Almonds, rose petals, raisins and saffron
How to make ?
Turn Instant Pot to Sauté-Hi mode. Add coconut oil. Once its warm, add grated carrots. Sauté for 2-3 mins stirring frequently.
Cancel Sauté mode. Add almond milk, sugar and mix well. Close the lid with the pressure value set to sealing. Select Manual -Hi for 5 mins. After it's done cooking, wait on keep warm timer for 8-10 minutes and then release leftover pressure by switching the knob to venting. Carefully open the lid.
Add almond meal and cardamom powder. Mix well.
Turn Instant Pot to Sauté Hi and cook for 5-7 mins until most of the liquid is evaporated. Cancel sauté.
Garnish with sliced almonds, raisins or rose petals. Serve hot or chilled.
Simplified Easy Recipe
In good old days, carrot halwa was very tedious to make. Grating a whole lot carrots by hand is hard work. Slow cooking carrots and milk to reduce it to pudding like consistency also is a job of several hours. Since milk tends to burn quickly, you needed to actively watch and cook it too.
Now we can use multiple kitchen gadgets to make this yummy dessert effortlessly. I use high speed food processor to grate the carrots. Saves a lot of elbow grease instead of grating it by hand. It also ensures consistent smooth texture.
We then use Instant Pot, to practically dump everything in and let it cook. And have a divine sweet treat ready whenever you got those dessert cravings. And the texture is similar to what it use to be simmering for hours -Creamy, yummy , delicious and healthy.
Storage
Carrot Almond Pudding freezes well. So you can easily double the recipe and save it for later use as well. If serving for the parties, you can also make this recipe ahead of time. It will keep well in the refrigerator for 5 days.
Serving Suggestions
Typically Indian desserts are served along with the main meals. For celebrations and festivals like Diwali and Holi, a variety of dishes are prepared and served as a Thali - Platterful of dinner.
A typical thali dinner consists of an appetizer, couple of entrees (called subzi) a dessert, rice , naan or roti along with accompaniments like chutney, pickle and papad.
So to create such delightful thali dinner, use this gajar halwa as a dessert along with Samosa Chat or Aloo Tikki as an appetizer, Aloo Matar , Rajma Masala or Punjabi Kadhi as mains along with Turmeric Lemon Rice, roti or naan.
Serving it for festivals
Gajar Halwa makes an excellent base to make some stunning dessert creations. I like to serve it in single serve portions and layer it with different toppings. It makes stunning show stopper deserts displays.
I like to layer different toppings. You can portion them in individual containers or shot glasses. Recycled yogurt glass containers look very pretty, so do small mason jars.
One of the popular and favorite layering is with Vegan Rice Pudding to make beautiful Dessert Jars. You can serve gajar halva in the shot glasses or as parfaits. Top it off with some whipped cream or dollop of ice crème. Divine and delicious.
Carrots take center stage during Easter celebrations. Make this sweet treat to impress your little ones Along with Carrot Cake With Dates, it adds nice spring vibes to your holiday parties. For a change up use Homemade Apple Butter Sauce for fruity, creamy goodness.
Orange is the color for the Halloween . So I love making individual mason jars with this pudding. You simply fill it with spoonful of Carrot pudding. Add some whip cream on top and top it off with some Halloween sprinkles. Beautiful and decadent sweet treat is satisfying and wholesome.
Recipe FAQs
Classic gajar halwa made in millions of Indian kitchens includes regular milk or condensed milk as well as ghee which is clarified butter. In this dairy free and vegan version, I am using almond milk instead of regular milk, coconut oil instead of ghee and almond flour instead of mawa or khoya. Trust me, this version is just as delicious if not better and satisfying.
Carrot Halwa is Indian carrot Pudding. It is popular dessert named Gajar Halwa. Gajar is Indian term for carrots. Halwa is Indian sweet or dessert which under broad category covers variety of different dishes. Halwa is like a pudding made by reducing milk to thick consistency. So carrot halwa is Indian carrot pudding.
★ If you make this Gajar Halwa - Indian Carrot Pudding Recipe , do let us know how you like it by ★ star rating it and leaving a comment below.
📖 Recipe
Gajar ka Halwa - Indian Carrot Pudding
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoon coconut oil
- 6 cups grated carrots about 8-10 carrots grated
- 2½ cups unsweetened almond milk
- ¾ cup cane sugar or sweetener of your choice adjust for sweetness
- 1 cup almond powder or almond meal
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
Optional Garnishes
- 2 Tablespoons sliced or blanched almonds
- 1 Tablespoon rose petals, saffron or raisins
Instructions
How to Make Gajar ka Halwa in the Instant Pot
- Turn Instant Pot to Sauté-Hi mode. Add coconut oil. Once its warm, add grated carrots. Sauté for 2-3 mins stirring frequently.
- Cancel Sauté mode. Add almond milk, sugar and mix well. Close the lid with the pressure value set to sealing. Select Manual -Hi for 5 mins.
- After it's done cooking, Wait for keep warm timer for 8-10 minutes and then release the leftover pressure.
- Add almond meal and cardamom powder. Mix well.
- Turn Instant Pot to Sauté Hi and cook for 5-7 mins until most of the liquid is evaporated. Stir frequently so it doesn't burn at the bottom. Cancel Saute.
- Garnish with sliced almonds, raisins or rose petals. Serve hot or chilled. Enjoy !
How to make carrot halwa on the stove top
- Heat the heavy bottom pan. Add the ghee or coconut oil. Add grated carrots and stir for 5-6 minutes. Make sure carrots change color and look roasted. Keep stirring frequently.
- Add milk and sugar. Stir few times. Let it boil on low to medium heat. Stir frequently so it does not burn at bottom. Stir in Almond meal. The mixture will start to become thick.
- Keep stirring as the mixture thickens. Add cardamom powder and cook till all the liquid had evaporated and mixture is becoming dry. Serve hot or at room temperature as a dessert.
Notes
Nutrition
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Kat
Do you think this might be able to be made in a crockpot?
Prajakta Sukhatme
Yes. It will work in crock-pot. You will need about 6 hours of slow cooking.
Marsha
I made this last night, and it was SO delicious! I thought I had cardamom in my pantry, but was mistaken. So I used garam masala instead. I will be making this again properly when I have a chance to pick up some cardamom.
camila
sounds great! I love carrots! I've never tried anything like this!
Jessica Formicola
I've never had this, but it sounds amazing! I love that it's made in the Instant Pot!
Sherri
I have never had carrot-almond pudding before but being that I LOVE carrots, I am sure I would love it! Can't wait to give it a try! 🙂
Wajeeha
One of my favorite childhood memories is of my mom making gajar halwa in winters. It woud take so long though, I love the idea of using the instantpot. Will be trying your version soon! 🙂
Mindy Fewless
This looks so interesting! I'd love to try it!