Mukhadi Halwa Recipe (Semolina & All Purpose Flour Halwa)

This heirloom recipe, from my mother's side of the family, is a unique and decadent Suji Halwa. What makes it different from the regular halwa is it's unique and unusual method of preparing and cooking. Semolina and all purpose flour is soaked in milk and roasted along with caramelised sugar. I absolutely love this dessert for its inimitable flavours. Course : Dessert Ingridients : 1 cup Sooji (Semolina/ Rava) 3 tablespoons All Purpose Flour (Maida) 1 cup Milk , +1/3 cup extra 1 cup Sugar 3/4 cup Ghee Instructions To begin making the Mukhadi Halwa recipe, remove 3 table spoons of semolina from one cup of semolina. and replace it with 3 tablespoons of all purpose flour. Transfer this mix into a bowl and add milk. Whisk them together and set aside while you begin to prep for caramelising the sugar.Heat a heavy bottomed pan, add ghee and once it begins to get hot (not smoking), reduce the heat to medium. Add sugar and level it in ghee using a spatula. After five minutes stir the sugar using a spatula (using spatula helps ensure that the caramel won’t stick to it). Keep stirring once in a while till the sugar starts caramelizing as it melts. (The colour of the caramel should not deepen or darken in colour as this will lead to a bitter tasting halwa)Give a quick stir to the flour-semolina batter and slowly add it to the caramelised sugar.Now, starts the tricky part. Hold the wok or pan firmly using a cloth or holder (to avoid the heat) so that you can work your way with the batter. Using ladle (a large heavy spoon/ kalchhul), carefully yet swiftly start mixing the batter into the caramel. The batter will seem to turn lumpy but nothing to worry.Increase the flame to medium and using the back of the spoon keep smashing the batter, especially the whitish lumps, till the whole batter gets completed assimilated and incorporated with the caramel and the halwa wears a homogeneous look.This process will take approximately 3 to 4 minutes. You will also notice that the halwa releases the oil as it begins to come together as evenly toned mixture. At this point, remove excess oil in a small bowl and again roast the halwa for 3 to 4 minutes. Switch off the heat and push the halwa towards the edge of one side of the wok to allow any excess ghee to drain in the centre. Once the ghee leaves the halwa, drain it out in the bowl. Halwa is now ready to be served!Serve Mukhadi Halwa as a dessert after your weekday meal of Dal Makhani, Aloo Ki Sabzi and Phulka.