Pineapple Halwa - With Low Fat Khoya!

With Low Fat Khoya ready on my kitchen counter, I had to use it to make something ASAP. You don't keep such things waiting for too long right?? Its bad for my peace of mind. I mean, I will keep thinking about it to distraction and behave like a cat on a hot tin roof.  Make something out of it, polish it off - Ah! Peace!!! I usually do not make halwas as they generally need a considerable amount of fat and the ones that use less fat don't usually taste all that great. Honestly, halwas aren't the thing my mind conjures up when I think of dessert. Oh, yeah, am really partial to some desserts. But I made an exception this time and was raring to try out Pineapple Halwa, another Tarla Dalal recipe. Counting the recipes on my blog a few years from now, you can safely bet, a good number of these will be from either Sanjeev Kapoor or Tarla Dalal.

Well, this halwa was on my mind since ages. But, aaa.. hmmm... I have to first hunt for a good pineapple. If I am lucky enough to get one which is sweet and has no bruises( forgive the expression) I would need to take up the great exercise of peeling the thorny skin, ensuring there is not a single tiny black thorn hiding anywhere. If there is any fancy gadget which can help do all this, I am unaware and I would appreciate info on the same:-)).

This halwa, sounded quite unusual to me and the addition of the Low Fat Khoya added to its allure. Read on to know how this low fat sweet treat became a winner in my books.

I was real, real, lucky!! The pineapple was unusually sweet, not a single bruise, ripe, yet firm. Almost like canned pineapple. Here is what I did

Pineapple  - Finely chopped, 2 Cups
Sugar -2 tbsp(Alter to suit your taste)
Low fat Khoya - Grated, 1 Cup (Alter to suit your taste)
Ghee / Clarified Butter - 1 teaspoon
1/2 cup low fat milk
Saffron - A few strands, soaked in 1 teaspoon warm milk
Almonds  - A few, blanched, toasted and slivered.
Edible Silver Leaf /varq  for garnish

Heat the ghee in a heavy bottomed pan. Add the chopped pineapple and the sugar. Cook on a low flame for about 8-10 minutes or till the pineapple becomes soft. Keep stirring often. Add the khoya and the milk, mix gently and cook for 5 more minutes. Add the soaked saffron and remove from heat.

Garnish with the almonds and silver leaf and serve warm.

The halwa tasted fabulous when eaten hot. I actually started with adding 1/2 cup khoya, but the halwa tasted too sweet with just 2 tablespoons sugar. I had imagined that the addition of the khoya would balance out the sweetness, but it did not. The pineapple was REAL sweet, may its tribe increase;-). I had to add the rest of the khoya to adjust the sweetness. So be careful with the sugar, adjust according to the sweetness/tartness of the fruit. My halwa turned out a little less halwa-like in consistency too, so feel free to adjust the consistency with milk and the amount of khoya you would like to add.

Summary: Thumbs Up to Low fat Khoya!!