Papaya Halwa

Recipe No: 218

Throughout the years, we used to have at least one Papaya plant at a time, in our backyard and my Mother used to make a  variety of dishes with Papaya. Of all those dishes two of them were desserts, one is Papaya Fruit Salad and the other  is Papaya Halwa. Even though she didn’t have an exact recipe for this (like everything else) , I followed the exact same procedure. I didn’t use any colors in this dish but, with the color of the Papaya it can range from light orange to dark orange.

Ingredients                                      

• Papaya cut into cubes……………1 ¼ kg (Peel and remove the seeds)
• Sugar………………………………....250 grams
• Broken Cashew pieces…………..1/4 Cup
• Ghee…………………………………...1/4 -1/3 cup
• Cardamom Powder………………1/2 Teaspoon

Method of Preparation 

1. Blend Papaya really well using just enough Water to make the blender work. (½ - ¾ cup Water will do)

2. Heat a pan and boil the blended Papaya till it starts to form big bubbles.
3. Add Sugar and stir to combine; let it boil on high until it starts to come from the sides.
4. Add the Ghee, a tablespoon at a time, mixing well after each addition.
5. Mix in the Cashew pieces and stir till the Ghee starts to ooze out slightly.
6. Mix in the Cardamom Powder and remove it from the pan into a buttered dish; press the top and even it out with the back of a spoon; let it cool down.
7. Cut into pieces and serve at room temperature; store the leftovers in an airtight container.

Notes: 

• The amount of Sugar in this recipe will not make the Halwa too sweet like the regular ones. So if you want it sweeter add more Sugar.
• There are chances for the mixture to splatter while cooking. So please use a splatter guard or cover it partially with the lid of the pan and guard yourself while stirring.
• Once it starts to form large bubbles, do stir the Halwa constantly to avoid burning in the bottom.
• Wipe off the extra Ghee from the Halwa using a Paper towel.
• As it is a Sugar based Halwa, it will reach its correct consistency fast. Stop cooking as soon as you see Ghee oozing out. If it goes too far, it will become hard when cooled. But still you have to stir till the Ghee oozes out, or it will not be able to cut the Halwa into pieces.

Make it, enjoy the deliciousness and
serve it to your family with love…