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Pakistani
Spiced Semolina Halwa Breakfast
28 min total8 prep20 cook4 servings400 cal
VegetarianClassicContains glutenContains dairyContains tree nut
A warm, glossy semolina pudding roasted in ghee and perfumed with cardamom, then studded with nuts and raisins. A traditional South Asian breakfast sweet, especially loved on weekends and festivals.
Ingredients
pantry
- 1 cupsemolina (sooji)
- 0.75 cupgranulated sugar
- 4cardamom pods
- 0.33 cupmixed nuts (almonds, pistachios)
- 0.25 cupraisins
dairy
- 0.5 cupghee
- 0.5 cupmilk
other
- 2.5 cupwater
Steps
- Roughly chop the nuts and lightly crush the cardamom pods.
- Bring the water and milk to a gentle simmer in a saucepan and keep it warm.
- Melt the ghee in a heavy pan over medium heat.
- Add the chopped nuts and raisins, fry briefly until golden, then scoop out and set aside.
- Add the semolina to the same ghee and roast, stirring constantly, until golden and fragrant, about 8 minutes.
- Stir in the crushed cardamom.
- Carefully pour the hot water-milk mixture into the semolina while stirring vigorously to avoid lumps.
- Add the sugar and keep stirring as the halwa thickens and absorbs the liquid.
- Cook until the halwa pulls away from the sides and the ghee glistens on top.
- Fold in most of the fried nuts and raisins, saving some for garnish.
- Serve warm, topped with the reserved nuts.
Tips
- Roast the semolina patiently until it turns golden and smells nutty for deep flavor.
- Add the hot water carefully and stir constantly to prevent lumps.
- Adjust the sugar to taste; a 1:1 ratio of semolina to sugar is traditional but can be reduced.
- Toast the nuts in a little ghee first for extra aroma and crunch.
