Mango Halwaa
(Sweet Mango Dessert)
Ingredients:- Ripe mangoes : 2 big sized ones.
- Khoya (dried whole-milk) : 500gm - loosely crumbled.
- Dry fruits : Cashew, almonds and raisins.
- Aam papad (dried mango sheets/solid) - this is also known as 'aam-satva' in Bengal. Cut into small 1" cubes.
- Whole Cardamom - 5/6 pieces, crushed.
- Bay leaves - 1 or 2 pieces.
- Ghee or butter - 4tbsp.
- Sweetened Condensed Milk (Milkmaid) - 3-4 tbsp, mostly for garnishing (Optional)
- Peel off the mangoes, separate out half the quantity of mangoes, consisting of only solid pulp (which will be cut into small cubes), the rest half consisting the leftover pulp and the juice, is transferred into a mixer and blend with 3-4 cashew nuts and 2tbsp sugar into smooth paste. Now cut the separated pulps into small 1" cubes. Again from this, take out a handful of them for external garnishing at end.
- Cut or break the cashew nuts and almonds (take cashew nuts 3 parts and almond 1 part) into halves lengthwise. Heat butter/ghee in a pan. Saute them (I learned almonds shouldn't be roasted, so only cashews) and take out carefully before they start browning.
- In the same pan heat ghee/butter again to high flame. When it starts smoking, add the bay leaf and crushed cardamoms and keep stirring. Soon after that add the mango puree (bended paste), and simmer for few minutes in low flame.
- Them add the crumbled khoya gradually and keep stirring so to mix it into the hot mango mixture. Stir for few more minutes until the khoya mixes uniformly with mango paste.
- Spare some roasted cashew-nuts and raisins for final garnishing (we have already saved some mango cubes from the pulps). Now reduce the flame to minimum and add the mango pulp cubes, aam-papad cubes, almonds, raisins and roasted cashew-nuts. Keep stirring for another one or two minutes before turning off the oven.
- When it cools down, transfer to serving tray / plate, garnish with few cubes of mango, raisins and roasted cashew-nuts. Optionally you might also spread a spoonful of condensed milk to give it a nice look. Mango halwaa is ready !!
