Winters in India are synonymous with piping hot bowls of decadent gajar halwa, cooked with plenty of ghee and dry fruits. While it may be perfectly justified to eat a bowlful of halwa for breakfast if you wanted to, creating a breakfast variation of this beloved dessert, is nice to help shake things up once in a while. Overnight oats, a common breakfast option, are a no-cook method of making oatmeal. A bowl or jar of creamy oatmeal in the morning makes for a filling breakfast, that gives you the energy to tackle your day.
We’re taking two of our favourites – gajar halwa and overnight oats, and combining them for the perfect breakfast for the morning after some serious festive eating on Christmas. Oats are nutritious and light, thereby leaving the person eating, feeling full and not bloated. The beauty of this fusion dish is that you can take the guilt away from indulging yourself while also getting all the right fats, carbs and fibre necessary for good health.
Recipe:
Ingredients [For Halwa]:
- 1 cup shredded carrot
- 2 tablespoons ghee
- 7-8 cashews, broken
- 4-5 pistachios, broken
- ¾ cup milk
- 3 tablespoons unsweetened khoya
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
Ingredients [For Overnight Oats]:
- ½ cup rolled oats
- ½ cup milk
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup or honey
- ¼ cup Greek yoghurt
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
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Method:
- Heat some ghee in a pan and toast your cashews and pistachios till they turn into a shade of golden brown. Remove with a slotted spoon onto a saucer and set aside. In the pan with the leftover ghee, add the shredded carrots and toast for 3-4 minutes or until they start to darken in colour. Crumble in the khoya and mix well.
- Add the milk and sugar and cook on a low flame until the liquid is fully absorbed and the carrots cook down to a paste consistency. Flavour it with cardamom powder and add the dry fruits back into the mix and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the overnight oats and mix well. Add a quarter cup of the gajar halwa and mix again, until combined. Spoon into mason jars or bowls. Cover and refrigerate overnight or a minimum of 6 hours to yield a creamier consistency. Garnish with sliced dates, dry figs or raisins if you like, before serving.