HALWA RECIPE

 SOMALI  HALWA 

Ingredients:

• White sugar: 2 ½ cups
• Light brown sugar: 1 cup
• Water: 3 cups (for the sugar)
• Corn flour: ¾ cup
• Water: ¾ cup (for diluting corn flour)
• Oil: 4 tbsp
• Unsalted butter: 4 tbsp
• Cardamom: 3
• Nutmeg: 3
• Yellow and orange food color: a pinch

Preparation:

• Heat the butter in a pan. When it melts, remove from heat. Add oil to this ghee and keep aside.
• Mix the corn flour with ¾ cup of water without any lumps. Add the food coloring to this mixture and mix well and keep aside.
• Break the nutmeg shell and crush and grind the nuts.
• Remove the skin of the cardamoms and powder the seeds.

Method:

• Heat a pan. Add white sugar and light brown sugar. Add 3 cups of water and mix the mixture well. Allow the mixture to boil till both the white and brown sugars are completely dissolved.
• Add the powdered nutmeg and cardamom.
• Reduce the flame and add the corn flour mixture slowly.
• Cook by continuously stirring.
• Now start adding the butter-oil little by little at regular intervals without stopping the stirring. The butter-oil will get absorbed in the halwa.
• Continue to cook and stir, making sure that the halwa is cooked evenly, till the halwa leaves the sides of the pan and becomes a whole mass.
• Remove from heat. Delicious Somali halwa is ready.
• Wait for the halwa to cool a bit and serve warm.
• You can also pour the halwa into a greased tray and allow it to cool and then you can cut them into pieces and serve.

You can use cardamom powder and nutmeg powder, instead of powdering the seeds. You can also use 6 tbsp of ghee instead of butter and oil. The halwa can be garnished with roasted peanuts or roasted sesame seeds to enhance the taste and flavor.