Cranberry Halva
Mary Taylor
Any of us who’ve spent time in India know about Indian sweets. They’re both deadly and curiously nurturing. Many sweets are connected to particular holidays or traditional ceremonies, such as weddings or Diwali. The most amazing thing about Indian sweets is that they seem, to the novice Westerner, to be made from 100% sugar, 100% butter and 100% of something else. As Richard has sometimes remarked, the laws of physics don’t apply in India!
This recipe is sort of a cross between halva, fudge and a fruit wrap. Sounds terrible, but is a refreshing mouthful after a full meal. It’s also a good way to make (stop at step 2 when cranberries have popped and the liquid is reduced slightly, after about 15 minutes of cooking) and use leftover cranberry sauce, the American Holiday favorite that compliments Tofurky!
Yield: 24 Servings | Prep Time: 10 Minutes | Cooking Time: 1 hour
ingredients
16 ounces fresh cranberries
½ cup orange juice
¼ cup water
¾ cup maple syrup
2 cups coconut milk
2 teaspoons orange zest
1 ½ teaspoons ground cardamom
1 teaspoon coconut oil
½ cup desiccated coconut
directions
Pick over the cranberries to discard any that are overly soft. Rinse the remaining cranberries and transfer them to a medium sized saucepan.
Stir in the orange juice, water and maple syrup. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, then reduce the heat and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the coconut milk, orange zest and cardamom. Over medium low heat, continue to cook, stirring frequently to prevent sticking and burning, for about 40 minutes.
This is an excellent dish to cook while you’re trimming vegetables or preparing ingredients for other dishes, stirring the halva frequently without having to hover in the kitchen just to cook this sweet.
Once most of the liquid has cooked into the halva, watch the cooking process more closely, stirring often to prevent sticking. When the halva forms a ball as you stir, remove it from the heat and set aside to cool for 5 minutes.
Very lightly oil a 6-inch square mold or bread pan. Transfer the slightly cooled halva to the pan, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.
To serve, cut into wedges and roll in the desiccated coconut before serving. Or shape into balls or pyramid shapes to serve. May be prepared in advance and refrigerated for up to 10 days.
notes
If you like a much sweeter dessert, the maple syrup can be increased up to 1 ½ cups. You may also eliminate the orange juice, which balances the sweetness—but cranberries are pretty tart to begin with.