Carrots are so versatile. We consume it raw or cooked, by itself or with other ingredients. Here I have made a dessert with carrots and almond. A dessert with a healthy twist of carrots and almonds would sound not only fascinating but turn out to be super delicious as well.
Ingredients
- Carrots – 4 or 5 (chopped)
- Almonds – 12
- Sugar – ½ cup
- Almond milk/ soy milk – 1 cup
- Silvered almonds – 2 tablespoons
- Cardamom -2 pods (crushed)
Directions
1. Cook carrots and almonds in 1 ½ cup of water. Cook carrots, till they become soft. (15 minutes.) Let cool.
2. Puree carrots and almonds in a blender adding water as required.
3. Add soymilk/ almond milk to the pureed carrots in a pan. Stir in sugar and crushed cardamom. Bring it to boil.
4. Switch off the stove. Garnish with silvered almonds.
5. Can be served warm or cold.
Notes
1. If you don’t have sweet tooth, you can reduce sugar to ¼ cup.
“Paruppu payasam” – lentil kheer is a special dessert of South India. It is made on festivals and on special occasions. When I was a little girl this dish used to be my not only favorite dessert but also I used to eat it like main dish. Bowl after bowl would be consumed by me. Lentils with jaggery(or sugar) and coconut milk would taste awesome. Mind you, this is a nutirtious dish too. Lentils (moong dal and channa dal) add the protein content and jaggery (unrefined sugar) adds its share of minerals to the dessert. So, you are in for a guiltless feast!
Ingredients
- Moong dal – 1 cup
- Channa dal – ¼ cup
- Jaggery – 1 ½ cup (Jaggery – is a traditional unrefined sugar consumed in Asia, Africa and South America; Jaggery is rich in iron and magnesium)
- Coconut milk – 1 cup
- Sliced almonds – 2 tablespoons
- Cashews ( broken)- 3 tablespoons
- Margarine – 2 tablespoons
- cardamom- ½ teaspoon
Jaggery
Directions
1. Cook moong dhal and channa dhal to a creamy consistency for about 20 minutes in a pressure cooker or in a sauce pan. The dals should reach a creamy consistency.
2. Powder jaggery if using the cubed form and add to the dhal.
3. The dal would become little watery on adding the jaggery. Bring it to a boil. Stir in coconut milk.
4. Heat margarine in a different pan and add sliced almonds and broken cashews. Fry them for few minutes; be careful enough not to burn them.
5. Add cardamom, cashews, almonds along with melted margarine and cook over medium heat for 3 more minutes.
Notes
1. You could use granulated sugar (cup for cup) in place of jaggery, but jaggery enhances the taste of payasam.
2. This kheer could be served hot or cold. To serve cold, refrigerate 2 hours before serving.
This is my entry for Courtney’s My Legume Love Affair 10th helping and Susan’s My legume love affair.
