Rose flavoured Karachi Halwa - Diwali Special Recipes

My mother used to make this for Diwali when she was young. It's quick and easy and for me, a recipe to continue tradition. Typically it's made with a cardamom or kewra flavouring but I picked rose. It's a keeper!

Ingredients:

1 cup Corn flour

1 1/2 cups Sugar

1/2 cup Ghee

5-7 Sliced Almonds

2 drops Rose essence

2-3 drops Pink colour 

Mix the corn flour with 1 1/2 cup of water while whisking. Make sure there are no lumps. 

Add about 1/2 cup of water to the sugar and heat till it just dissolves. 

Mix the corn flour and sugar syrup. Cook this in a non-stick or thick bottom pan on a low heat while stirring. In about 15 minutes, it will start to thicken. Add ghee at this time and continue to cook till all the ghee is absorbed in the halwa. Add the colour and essence and cook for 2-3 minutes more. It will be a thick mass now. Taste a little bit, it should not taste floury. Place this into a greased container and level. Press down the almond slivers while it is still hot. It will harden once it cools down. You can refrigerate it to cool it. Cut into squares and serve. Store in an air-tight container upto a week. 

Note:

I found that I was not fast enough to have all the almonds placed in the halwa before it cooled. As a result a lot of nuts came off the sweet. To avoid this, mix in the almonds when you add the colour and flavouring.