Sheera / Sooji Halva

Sheera can be made as a evening time snack or as an accompaniment to your menu. A version of this sheera with banana is made as a traditional 'prashad' for satyanarayan pooja. This
can also be given to kids in their tiffin. Since sheera is made in pure ghee, you can expect it to have lot of calories.

Ingredients:
Coarse Rava (Sooji/Semolina) - 2 cups
Ghee - 1/2 cup
Whole Fat milk - 2 cups
Water - 2 cups
Veldoda (Cardamom/elaichi) powder - 1/2 tsp.
Almonds, Cashewnuts, Raisins - as per liking
Saffron - a few strands

Before you Start:
1) Roast rava/Semolina in ghee on medium heat. Take care that it does not stick to the bottom of the utensil as it can get burnt quickly. Keep mixing with spoon often to get it evenly roasted. 2) Mix milk and water together in a saucepan. Keep it for boiling, while the rava is roasting in another utensil.
3) Chop almonds and cashewnuts into small pieces. Raisins can be used as is.
4) Take green cardamoms. Remove the shell and get the seeds out. Using a mortar and pestle, make into powder. This can be stored and used as needed. But its flavor is best
when it is freshly powdered.

How to Proceed:
1) Once the rava is roasted, add sugar. Continue to cook for a 2 or 3 minutes.
2) Add chopped almonds, cashewnuts, raisins and saffron.
3) Mix well.
4) Turn up the heat and add the milk-water mixture. Take care as this mixture can splutter a lot.
5) Cover it immediately.
6) Let it cook for 2 or 3 minutes and then mix it up. Lower the heat to medium-low.
7) Allow it to simmer for another few minutes.
8) Serve hot.

For serving:
1) Take sheera in a small bowl. Press it down with a spoon and add more to the bowl till it gets full.
2) Put the bowl with the sheera upside down on a serving plate.
3) Lightly bang on to the bowl so that the sheera falls onto the serving plate and keeps the shape of the bowl.
4) Serve warm as is or with indian pickle.