Layered Carrot and Almond Barfi

The crisp chill of autumn makes me nostalgic; it takes me back to Dussehra and Diwali season when the sound of devotional music, chaos of giddily merry shoppers and aroma of deliciously aromatic street treats fill the autumn air. Gifts abundant and studying rare, it is the time of the year eagerly awaited by kids and grownups alike. And, unsurprisingly, there’s a lot of delicious food, some home-cooked, some procured from the many food-stalls that dot the streets with their best fares. With a variety of sweet and savoury treats on offer, one is truly spoilt for choice and among all things eaten with gusto, would be a big thali of assorted sweets that are beautifully perfumed with heady spices and ghee and enjoyed enthusiastically with milky masala chai and as dessert to mark the end of every meal that is complete with curries, biryanis, parathas, kebabs and many such divine delights. It’s truly the most festive and happy time of the year; much like Christmas for us Indians. Among all the lovely things that my mom would make to mark this festive and auspicious time of the year, Badam (Almond) barfi and Gaajar (carrot) Halwa hold a special place in my heart. Subtly sweet and wonderfully aromatic, I would eat loads of them and often quite messily. I would crumble a barfi into a bowl of halwa and tuck in gleefully as my mom would half-heartedly reprimand me for being such a messy little kid while smiling kindly. Strange and messy as it was, the combination, in my opinion, is divine. And, now, as I live oceans away from India and my mom, I have made a ritual of making my layered Badam (Almond) and Gaajar (carrot) Barfi during Dussehra and Diwali to celebrate beautiful memories of my childhood. Here, in London, there is no sound of devotional music, no chaos of giddily merry shoppers and no aroma of deliciously aromatic street treats emanating from food-stalls but there is joy in my heart as my home fills with the familiarly festive aroma of saffron and cardamom as they perfume these barfi that brings two of my favourite autumn treats into a neat little bite.

Ingredients (16 servings):

• 600 gm of carrot, grated

• 400 ml evaporated milk (200 ml for the almond barfi layer and the rest for the carrot barfi layer)

• 200 of gm ground almonds

• A generous pinch (about 8-10 strands) of saffron

• 4 finely ground cardamom

• 2 tbsp of ghee (clarified butter); you could 4 tsp of flavourless oil to cook the carrots and use 2 tsp of ghee for flavour

• 12 -15 tbsp (180 -225 grams) of sugar (about 6 tbsp or 90 grams for the almond barfi and 6 – 10 tbsp or 90 – 135 grams for the layer of carrot halwa)

• 20 grams of almond flakes

• 15 grams pistachio nuts, roughly crushed

Method:

• Place a pan in low heat and when mildly warm, add half the evaporated milk in a pan and add in a pinch (4-5 strands) of saffron and half of the cardamom powder.

• Stir to combine and add in the ground almond.

• Stir immediately as the ground almond soaks the evaporated milk almost immediately.

• Add in about 6 tbsp or 90 grams of sugar and stir thoroughly to distribute evenly.

• Keep stirring until the ground almonds is thick and comes off the walls of the pan upon stirring.

• Stir in 1 tsp of ghee and take off the heat immediately to preserve the delicate aroma of ghee.

• Place the almond barfi dough into a lined flat dish and spread it out evenly.

• Set aside and prepare the layer of carrot halwa.

• Place the same unwashed pan over medium – low heat.

• Once the pan is hot, add in the ghee reserving about 1-1.5 tsp for later.

• Once the ghee melts, add in the grated carrots and cook with the lid on stirring every 5 minutes until the carrot is soft and falls apart when pressed with the back of a spoon.

• Pour in the milk and the rest of the saffron and stir well to combine.

• Placing the lid back on but slightly ajar, cook over low heat stirring every 5 minutes until most of the milk has evaporated.

• Add in 6 tbsp or 90 grams of sugar and stir thoroughly to combine.

• You will find that sugar will melt and make the mixture a little syrupy; cook over medium-low flame stirring every couple of minutes until the syrup evaporates.

• Add in most of the almond slivers and the chopped pistachio saving a little of each for garnish.

• Taste a little carefully and add more sugar if required; this step is important because the natural sweetness of carrots will greatly influence the sweetness of your halwa and the sugar you need will vary greatly.

• When the halwa thick and comes off the walls of the pan upon stirring, add in the ghee and rest of the ground cardamom and mix well to combine; you want the halwa thicker and drier than usual as we want it to set to make barfi squares.

• Take it off the heat almost immediately to preserve the delicate flavours of ghee and cardamom powder and add in over the almond barfi and spread it in an even layer.

• Sprinkle the rest of the pistachio and almond flakes evenly and press in gently.

• Once completely cool, run a knife along the inner sides of the pan to dislodge the barfi from the sides of the pan.

• Place a piece of baking sheet over the barfi and then, placing your palm gently over the baking sheet, flip the pan to remove the barfi from the pan.

• Place gently on a chopping board almond side down as it is the sturdier and more supportive layer of the two and cut into 16 to 20 pieces.

• Serve it Diwali thali style with samosas, kachoris, masala chai etc and enjoy!