It’s that season again! No, I am not talking about the frantic holiday season, but the colorful arrival of fall with its orange halloween pumpkins and colorful winter squashes and gorgeous red sunsets. Things get a little gloomy this season with the shorter days and longer chillier nights, and to me, the brightly-hued winter squashes spread a bit of cheer to dispel the gloom.
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| Butternut Squash Halvah |
We seem to be hurtling towards yet another dry winter in California! (Another reason we need these colorful little guys to cheer us up.) I don’t think I can take these dry winters any longer. Who’s up for a rain dance? On the bright side, I guess everyone in California now is a firm believer in climate change.
Coming back to the winter squashes, the markets are starting to burst with them of late!
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| Winter Squashes, Sweet Potatoes, and Apples in the market |
If I had to pick a favorite among these little guys, it would definitely be kabocha squash, as I love it’s hearty flavor and texture.
Winter squashes will store for at least a couple of months (or more) in a cool dark area in the pantry, so stock up on them when they are cheap! This time I opted for a nice plump butternut squash as I was planning to make halvah a la carrot halwa.
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| Butternut Squash, peeled and cut |
The skin on the butternut squash (and even kabocha) can be left on if you are going to make a baked dish or curry, but since I was planning on making halvah, I peeled it. Then I cut the squash with my trusted Global chef knife and grated it using a box grater.
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| Peel, cut and grate the butternut squash |
The rest of the procedure is similar to making carrot (gaajar) halwa, although there are several variations of that as well. Amma prefers to pressure cook the grated carrot in milk to shorten the process. Purists would insist on cooking it on a low flame with milk and sugar until the milk evaporates. Yet others use “mava” or “khoya” (milk solids) to make the halvah creamy.
I created my own method using ideas gleaned from my favorite cooking blogs (such as Veggie Belly’s Pumpkin Halwa and The Kitchn’s Carrot Halwa Recipe). My favorite inspiration came from Saveur which has a recipe for a middle eastern pumpkin halvah that I have to definitely try sometime soon!
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| Butternut Squash Halvah |
Even though I was apprehensive, the halvah turned out pretty well. V, who does not care for any type of halva loved it, although with each spoonful he intently fished for every single cashew I had put in!
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| Cashew nut halves in ghee |
Here’s the recipe.
[Printable Recipe]
Ingredients:
1 medium sized butternut squash
2 cups whole milk
2 cups sugar
6 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup cashew nuts, split
2-3 cardamom pods, crushed
A few strands of saffron
- Peel the butternut squash. Then cut the bottom bulb and take out the seeds. Then cut it in to 4 large pieces. Cut the top part also in to 2 large pieces.
- Using a box grater, grate the butternut squash. If loosely packed it yields around 8-10 cups.
- Boil the milk, then lower the heat and allow it to reduce to half the quantity or less
- Meanwhile, heat 4 Tbsps of butter in a heavy-bottomed vessel on low heat until it is browned and fragrant (i.e., the butter becomes ghee)
- Add the butternut squash to the ghee and allow to cook over low flame for about 20 mins
- Add the sugar and reduced milk to the squash
- Cook until it reaches jam-like consistency
- Add the crushed cardamom and mix
- Heat the remaining 2 Tbsps of butter in a small pan until it becomes ghee. Throw the cashews in and fry until golden brown
- Garnish the halva with cashews and saffron. Serve warm or chilled.
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| Butternut Squash Halvah |
