Lauki ka halwa

Lauki ka halwa is an Indian dessert made from bottle gourd. Lauki is also known as kaddu, and this dessert is a must try.

I generally fall short of ideas with bottle gourd. Either add it to dal or make curry. So this time I wanted to try halwa just like carrot/ beetroot halwa. It tasted so good, from now whenever I visit the market I am going to buy a large bottle gourd so that I can use some part of it to make this dessert.

This hot halwa is surely a winner in the cold winters. :)

Ingredients:

Bottle gourd, peeled and grated: 250 grams
Ghee: 3 tbsp
Cashew nuts: 3 tbsp
Raisins: 3 tbsp
Milk: 1 cup
Cardamom powder: 1/2 tsp
Saffron strands: 5-6

Method:

1. Heat ghee in a pan, fry cashew nuts and raisins. Put them aside.
2. Now add grated bottle gourd and fry for 5 minutes on low flame. 
   
3. Add milk, sugar, saffron milk and cardamom powder. 
   
4. When the halwa is cooked and ghee starts leaving the sides of the pan switch off the flame.
5. Add fried cashews and raisins.
   
6. Serve hot.

Linking this recipe to Tanya

Shrikhand

Shrikhand is an Indian dessert which is loved even by non yogurt lovers. Plain yogurt is transformed into a delicacy by just adding 3-4 ingredients. It belongs to Gujarati and Maharastrian cuisine. Very simple to make but requires little time to refrigerate.

Ingredients:

Yogurt: 1 cup
Sugar: 1 cup
Cardamom powder: 1 tsp
Saffron color: 1 tsp
Dry fruits for garnishing

Method:

1. Hang the curd in a muslin cloth for 1 hour till all the water is drained. 
   
2. Take the hung curd into a bowl and mix sugar. 
3. Refrigerate for an hour and filter it again. If there are any left over yogurt pieces they will be separated. 
   
4. Now add cardamom powder, saffron color.
   
5. Keep it refrigerated so that the curd doesn't go sour.
6. Garnish with dry fruits and serve. 

Linking this recipe to Tanya