Pineapple Halwa/ Kesari

Source: Pakistani Food Recipes

Happy Deepavali/Diwali!!!

So I actually made this for Durgashtami last month, but in the spirit of Diwali I decided to post this. It's a very quick and simple recipe you can whip up in a jiffy! My wonderful m-in-law does a great job of reminding the younger generation about festival dates and what should be made when. This gets tough to do during the weekdays when you come home late from work, and traditionally you are supposed to make these items fresh on the same day of the festival (not in advance). I actually came home at a decent time from work, had some pineapple in the fridge, and thus came out pineapple halwa!

Ingredients

• Suji/ Rava/ Semolina – 1 cup
• Crushed pineapple – 1 cup
• Sugar – 1 cup
• Ghee/Butter – ½ tbsp
• Water – 2 cups
• Saffron – ½ tsp (dissolve in water)
• Cardamom powder – ½ tsp
• Raisins – ¼ cup
• Cashews – ¼ cup coarsely chopped

Directions

1. Dissolve saffron strands in 2 cups of water
2. In a pan, add ½ tbsp of Ghee/butter. Add suji and dry roast it on medium low temperature, till it releases rich aroma. It will look light golden in color.
3. Add crushed pineapple and sugar to the pan and mix well. Immediately add the saffron water, while stirring continuously or it will be lumpy.
4. Add raisins, cashews and cardamom powder to it and mix well.
5. Cook for another 2-3 minutes

Kuty's Twist

I honestly didn't have to alter this recipe at all. I did use fresh pineapple. Next time I'll probably put more as the pineapple flavor was not too strong.

I also used a non-stick pan and was constantly stirring to avoid lumps.