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Loaves of whole wheat, multigrain and plain old white bread are a staple in most Indian households and have over time been incorporated into Indian cuisine. Bread has been used to make several savoury and sweet dishes which infuse its malleable texture and lightly sweet and salty taste with local spices and condiments for a reimagination of traditional recipes. Bread halwa is one such take on the classic Indian dessert which uses bread crumbs instead of suji or rawa to make the sweet treat.
The recipe for the bread halwa then comprises most of the ingredients that go into making the suji halwa. Sometimes, milk is swapped for sugar syrup to give the halwa a sweeter and more crumbly texture. But the primary ingredients, sugar, ghee and milk most often than not remain the same while making the bread halwa. Dry fruits like cashews and raisins and spices such as cardamom are also added to the dish for another layer of flavour.
This indulgent sweet is generally concocted at home to finish off leftover bread and can be served hot or chilled. However, nowadays, it has become a very popular dessert alternative served widely in weddings and on other festive occasions. Bread halwa also pairs wonderfully with aromatic and flavourful biryani and is a dessert especially devoured after a sumptuous meal of biryani and kebabs.
Since bread halwa is a dish that sprouted out of an ingenious imagination to use leftover bread slices in a simple, yet tasty way, there are several different ways to make this dessert. The recipe varies slightly in every household so that some toast the bread in ghee while others deep fry it before adding milk and sugar. Whatever the method, bread halwa brings out the dense and rich texture of bread dipped in ghee and milk and is one of those desserts which turns out delicious any way you make it. Popular across most Indian regions, a generous helping of bread halwa will surely transport you to a decadent heaven and leave you feeling extremely luxe.
Ingredients:
4/5 slices of bread
¼ cup sugar (or, as preferred)
1 ½ cups milk
1 tablespoon raisins
8-10 cashews
½ teaspoon cardamom powder
5-6 saffron strands (optional)
Oil or ghee for frying
Method:
Frying Dry fruits
1. In a thick-bottomed kadhai, add 2-3 tablespoons of ghee. Keep the flame on medium to low heat.
2. Add cashews and stir them lightly until they turn golden.
3. Remove the fried cashews from the kadhai and set them aside.
4. In the same kadhai, add raisins and fry them until they swell.
5. Remove the raisins and keep aside.
Frying Bread
1. Remove the crusts of the bread and slice them into cubes.
2. In the same kadhai, add the bread cubes and roast them in ghee.
3. Stir continuously and flip the cubes until they turn lightly golden uniformly, on all sides.
For The Halwa:
1. As the bread turns golden, add ¼ cup sugar to the kadhai. Keep the flame on medium to low heat.
2. Pour the milk next, and stir lightly. You can also add a mix of half water and half milk. However, adding milk gives the halwa a creamier and more luxurious texture.
3. Keep stirring until the sugar dissolves completely and the bread cubes start absorbing the milk.
4. Add cardamom powder and saffron strands (optional) to the mixture and continue stirring.
5. Simmer on low flame as the bread and milk come together and start thickening.
6. Once the mixture thickens completely, add 1 heaped tablespoon of ghee.
7. Stir until the ghee is completely absorbed in the halwa.
8. Now, add the fried cashews and raisins. You can set some aside for the garnish.
9. Bring the halwa mixture together until ghee starts oozing out on the sides. The dessert will now be without any stickiness and have a texture akin to the suji halwa.
10. Remove from the heat and garnish with the leftover dry fruits.
11. Bread halwa is now ready to be enjoyed. Serve it warm or refrigerate it to serve as a chilled dessert, especially after a biryani meal.
