The Factory's Got Nothing on This
It's always bothered me that people don't appreciate carrot cake. When prepared the right way, it can taste delicious. One of my favorite Indian desserts is gajar ka halwa, which is grated carrots mixed with heavily condensed milk (khoya/mawa) and flavored with cardamom, raisins, and nuts. One of my other favorite desserts is cheesecake, so yesterday, I decided to make a combination of the two. In this recipe, I swapped the graham cracker crust for gajar ka halwa. Here's what you'll need:
For the gajar ka halwa:
-4 carrots, peeled and finely grated
-2 green cardamom pods
-4 tsp. of ghee
-1/2 tbsp. of green cardamom powder
-1/4 cup of raisins
-1/4 cup of slivered almonds
-1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk*
For the cheesecake:
-12 oz. tub of plain, whipped cream cheese
-3 tbsp. of powdered sugar
-1 egg
-2 egg yolks
-Juice of 1/2 a lemon
-1/4 tsp. of lemon zest
-1/2 tbsp. of green cardamom powder
-handful of cashews
Preparation:
-In a wok, melt 4 tbsp. of ghee and once it is heated up, add 2 cardamom pods and sauté for 1 minute.
-Add the shredded carrots to the wok.
*Since we're using sweetened condensed milk, there is no need for additional sugar, unless you have a real sweet tooth ;) Also, it's traditionally made from khoya or mawa, which is an extremely condensed milk, to the point where it becomes solids, but this is a shortcut I like to use.
**Note that my cheesecake came out a little burnt almost meringue like (which is what I tell myself as a consolation). The first time I created this recipe, I baked it closer to 325 ˚F, and over time and multiple iterations, I've learned to use a lower temperature. I have yet to try a water bath so the steam can help the cheesecake set properly. When I revisited this recipe, I used cupcake tins to make mini cheesecakes and topped it off with a chocolate ganache and almonds:
For the gajar ka halwa:
-4 carrots, peeled and finely grated
-2 green cardamom pods
-4 tsp. of ghee
-1/2 tbsp. of green cardamom powder
-1/4 cup of raisins
-1/4 cup of slivered almonds
-1 14 oz. can of sweetened condensed milk*
For the cheesecake:
-12 oz. tub of plain, whipped cream cheese
-3 tbsp. of powdered sugar
-1 egg
-2 egg yolks
-Juice of 1/2 a lemon
-1/4 tsp. of lemon zest
-1/2 tbsp. of green cardamom powder
-handful of cashews
Preparation:
-In a wok, melt 4 tbsp. of ghee and once it is heated up, add 2 cardamom pods and sauté for 1 minute.
-Add the shredded carrots to the wok.
-Stir the carrots until the moisture has reduced from the carrots. you may add 2 more tsp. of ghee if need be.
-Once the moisture from the carrots has been reduced and the raw taste of carrots is gone, slowly whisk in the sweetened condensed milk.
-Stir again and cook until the excess sweetened condensed milk has reduced.
-Add cardamom powder and stir for 1 minute.
-Add raisins and almonds and stir again.
-Switch off the flame and set the halwa aside to cool.
-In a large mixing bowl, add the cream cheese and powdered sugar and using a hand blender or a whisk; whisk until you get a creamy homogenous mixture of the cream cheese and sugar.
-Add the two egg yolks and one egg and whisk again.
-Add the lemon juice and whisk again.
-Add the cardamom powder and whisk again.
-Preheat an oven to 225ºF **
-Grease a springform pan and place a sheet of wax paper.
-Spread out the gajar ka halwa as your base. You may end up with leftover halwa which you can store for later.
-Now layer the cream cheese mixture on top and spread out till flat.
-Add cashews on top.
-Place in the oven and cook for 25-30 minutes, until the batter is not runny in the center.
-Cool in fridge 2 hrs before serving.
Enjoy! :)
*Since we're using sweetened condensed milk, there is no need for additional sugar, unless you have a real sweet tooth ;) Also, it's traditionally made from khoya or mawa, which is an extremely condensed milk, to the point where it becomes solids, but this is a shortcut I like to use.
**Note that my cheesecake came out a little burnt almost meringue like (which is what I tell myself as a consolation). The first time I created this recipe, I baked it closer to 325 ˚F, and over time and multiple iterations, I've learned to use a lower temperature. I have yet to try a water bath so the steam can help the cheesecake set properly. When I revisited this recipe, I used cupcake tins to make mini cheesecakes and topped it off with a chocolate ganache and almonds:
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