Description

There are so many things that you can do with beets. The first thing that comes to my mind is Beetroot Halwa.

Beetroot Halwa is one of the most popular Indian desserts. The traditional Halwa recipe has ghee (clarified butter) and milk. Here is a quick and simple recipe for a tasty Beet Halwa with no dairy and no ghee or oil.

To make it more simple we are only going to use 3 ingredients – Beets, plant-based milk and dates

Several of our friends tasted this and were pleasantly surprised by how good it is.

Method:

1. Soak dates in 1 cup of hot water. Make sure you take the pits out before soaking.
2. Peel the beets and shred them using a grater or food processor
3. Steam the shredded beets for 6 minutes. I use Epicure steamer.
4. In a pan, sauté the steamed beets for 3-5 minutes, stirring intermittently.
5. Let it cook until the water evaporates
6. Meanwhile, prepare your date paste. Blend the soaked dates along with water. This will make 1 to 1.5 cups of date paste.
7. Add soy milk or plant-based milk to beet mixture and let it cook for 5-10 minutes until the mixture thickens.
8. Add 1 to 1&1/2 cups of date paste according to your sweetness preference. Mix it well.
9. Let it cook for 3 minutes.
10. Add the elaichi/ cardamom powder and stir it well.
11. This is optional. You can add cashew cream or almond butter. I like the taste without them
12. Dry roast cashews and raisins in a separate pan. Add these to the halwa.
13. Sprinkle some rose water (optional)
14. Transfer to a serving bowl. It can be served at room temperature or chilled.

To make Cashew Cream: Blend 2 ounces or 60 grams of cashews in a small grinder with 4 tablespoons of water. This will make 4 tablespoons of cashew paste.

To make Date Paste: Blend 1 cup of dates with 1 cup of water. This will make 1 to 1.5 cups of date paste.