Carrot Halwa Steel Cut Oatmeal

I sometimes receive requests from readers for a particular recipe. Many times, they are ideas that I have already considered but just haven't figured out how to make yet. Sometimes, they are recipes that I immediately set off to create and appear on the blog within days. And then there are ideas like this one, for which I only have one response: "I don't know what that is and have no idea how I would make it."

Considering I've only eaten Indian food four times in my life, my knowledge of Indian cuisine is minimal. I have never eaten "Indian dessert" and have absolutely zero concept of what it's like or what it should taste like. Thus, when a reader begged me to create a halwa recipe, I had to reject her, claiming that I had no idea what it was or what it should taste like.

To make matters worse, I could not go out and buy halwa, for it's traditionally made with ghee (clarified butter), which is most definitely not vegan. The reader (whose messages I cannot find now, so I cannot give her the credit she deserves...) persisted and said it wouldn't be that hard, but I was so intimidated that I continued to refuse.

That was nearly a year ago, and recently I decided to just take the plunge. Disclaimer: I've never had halwa before and I have no idea if this tastes like it. However, I used this vegan halwa recipe from Healthy Girl's Kitchen as inspiration, and I can confidently claim that this oatmeal is delicious. Readers, I need you to confirm for me if this recipe tastes "authentic." Try it out and let me know in the comments!

Carrot Halwa Steel Cut Oatmeal

by The Oatmeal Artist

Prep Time: 10 min

Cook Time: 20 min

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Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1/4 cup raw cashews
• 1 large carrot
• 2 cups milk of choice
• 2 cups water (or more milk)
• 4 dates, sliced
• 1 cup steel cut oats (I use Country Choice Organic)
• 1/4 tsp cardamom
• pinch of salt

Instructions

1. Soak cashews in a small bowl of water for at least ten minutes.
2. Meanwhile, rinse and peel your carrot. Slice into 1-inch chunks and add to food processor.
3. When cashews are ready, drain and add to the food processor with the carrots. Pulse a few times until the cashews and carrots have mixed and are in gravel-sized bits. With my Ninja, this took mere seconds! Your processor may require more pulsing.
4. Add milk and water to a saucepan over medium high heat.
5. While waiting for liquid to boil, prepare your dates. Slice into tiny pieces and add to saucepan.
6. Once liquid comes to a low boil, add oats and carrot mixture, and reduce heat to medium or medium low. (If you'd like to add a teaspoon of flax or chia seeds, do so now.)
7. Stir occasionally and let the oatmeal cook for about fifteen minutes.
8. Once more of the liquid has absorbed, add cardamom and salt. Continue stirring occasionally.
9. When you're pleased with the consistency of the oatmeal, transfer to a bowl. Add a splash of your milk of choice and any other additional toppings (such as more cashews, etc.). You can also do what I did for the pictures and serve it in the traditional halwa format: pack the oatmeal into a ramekin, let it sit and firm up, and then empty upside-down onto a plate.

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**You can also find hundreds of other oatmeal recipes (as well as tons of other meatless recipes) on my Pinterest account!  You can also like The Oatmeal Artist on Facebook. Thanks!