Rajgira Sheero
Rajgira Sheero or halwa is a gluten free dessert usually prepared and consumed during the months of fasting. Rajgira is known as Amaranth grains in English. This sheero is so quick to make, taste too nutty and has very few ingredients. Every now and then, I would make it whether I am observing fast or not.
Rajgira sheero has very melt in your mouth texture. It’s made with ghee, sugar and water. Literally 4 ingredients that I mentioned. I keep Rajgira flour at home, but if you do not that’s the only ingredient you need to step out to buy.
You can also eat this sheero in small quantities in breakfast specially growing toddlers can stomach this well. Because its gluten free its light, the ghee brings all the richness. You can easily double or triple the recipe too. It might look like small quantity, but it really doubles up and small serving can satiate your sweet cravings.
The ghee is quite important in this recipe, its equal parts. It helps in roasting the flour. Without ghee or with less ghee, it does not roast well. You can remove the ghee once it made, as ghee separates once the final dish is ready. I usually remove excess ghee and use it for some other dishes. You can substitute ghee in this recipe. Butter can be used in place of ghee but its not the same taste.
Instead of water you can use milk too. I have always liked this sheero with water. Same way milk should be boiling hot when you add it to the sheero. Or else it will form lumps.
Instead of regular white sugar, you can use brown, or you can also use jaggery. If you have been following me, I always add some almond meal in my sweet recipes. But it’s totally optional.
Just few things to be careful about this recipe-
Keep stirring. Do not leave the pan unattended with flour in it. Cook it on medium heat, but you can crank down heat if it’s getting too hot quickly. The flour tends to burn quickly.
The liquid you add, whether that be milk or water should be boiling or scalding hot. Just be careful while adding it, as it will splatter and sizzle as both flour and liquid is hot.
As with every recipe, sweetness is personal preference. This dish is a sweet dish. So, you can add sugar more or less to your preference.. I prefer less to moderate sugar in my sweets or desserts.
Rajgira Sheero
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp ghee
- ½ cup amaranth flour
- 1 cup boiling water
- ¼-1/2 cup sugar or jaggery
- ¼ cup almond meal optional
- 2 tbsp nuts
Instructions
- In a pan, on medium heat take some ghee. Once the ghee is slightly warm, add in the chopped nuts. Roast the nuts until they are lightly brown, it will happen quickly. So, keep a close eye. Remove them and leave them aside.
- In same ghee, add amaranth flour and toast it until its changes color and feel lighter while stirring. Keep stirring. Do not leave it unattended. Flour tends to burn quickly.
- On another burner or in microwave, heat up some water or milk. It should be scalding hot when you pour it in the flour. Once the flour is toasted and the water is hot, add that hot water carefully in the flour and ghee mix. Be careful with the hot water. The flour mix will start sizzling.
- Let the water or milk, whatever you are using evaporated. Keep stirring all this while.
- Once all the water is gone, add in the sugar or jaggery. Sugar will release water so keep stirring and cooking until all the water is evaporated. Stir in the almond meal also.
- Garnish it with the roasted nuts. Serve it warm or at room temperature.
Notes
- It stays good for few days in the refrigerator stored in an airtight container.
- Make this halwa only in ghee. Oil doesn’t taste good in this recipe.
- Make sure to keep stirring the flour so that it doesn’t get burned.