Bombay Ice Halva

Stack of white and saffron ice halva in a plate with diya on the side.

5 from 1 vote

A unique sweet from Mumbai; this Ice Halva recipe is a quick recipe.

Made with a handful of ingredients; these paper thin halwa sheets are different from the other sweets and super addictive

Prep Time5

Cook Time25

Drying Time4

Total Time30

Course: Sweets

Cuisine: Indian

Diet: Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 140kcal

Author: Smruti

Ingredients

½ cup all purpose flour
½ cup ghee
½ cup cold milk
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds (crushed)
¼ cup almonds (slivered)
¼ cup pistachios (slivered)
¼ teaspoon saffron

Instructions

In a bowl heat the milk and add the saffron strands. Mix well.
½ cup cold milk, ¼ teaspoon saffron
Set aside for the flavors to steep and for the milk to come back to room temperature.
In a large pan add saffron infused milk, sugar and all purpose flour.
1 cup sugar, ½ cup all purpose flour
Mix it all to an even paste with no lumps. Then add melted ghee and mix.
½ cup ghee
Turn on the flame and start cooking the mixture on medium flame.
Cook till the sugar starts to melt and then add cardamom.
1 teaspoon cardamom seeds
Continue cooking while stirring till the mix starts to leave the sides and is thick.
Once the mixture leaves the sides, turn down the flame. Transfer the mixture to a ghee lined parchment paper.
Place another greased parchment paper on it and roll the mix into a thin even layer. Ideally the thickness should be only 1-2 centimeters.
Peel off the upper parchment paper and sprinkle slivered almonds, slivered pistachios and cardamom powder.
¼ cup almonds, ¼ cup pistachios
Place the parchment paper and roll the ice halwa till the toppings stick well to it.
Cool the ice halva at room temperature for 4-5 hours or in the refrigerator for an hour. Then remove, and slice into squares of about 3-4 inches.
Use a scissor to cut the parchment paper along with the halva and stack them.
Serve immediately or transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate to retain freshness longer.

Video

Notes

The steps are for kesar ice halva. Repeat the same with plain milk instead of saffron infused milk to make the white ice halva.
Make sure you start with all the ingredients cold or at room temperature. Warm milk will make a lumpy mix that is difficult to fix.
Use a pinch of yellow color if you want to cut down the saffron amount or want a deeper yellow color.
Spread the halva in. thin even layer to make sure it sets evenly and turns out smooth.
I like to let the halwa dry at room temperature for a few hours before moving to the refrigerator. Be careful that the halva does not crack while transferring.
Use bleached parchment paper to keep the halva looking white. I have used the unbleached version and so the paper does make the halva look darker with no change in taste.
Sliver the nuts super fine. Thick nuts tend to make holes in the halva.
The halva is traditionally served with the parchment paper stuck to it. It is peeled just before consuming. However, remove before serving this to kids to ensure they do not eat the paper.
Use a scale to cut the halva into even sized pieces. That way they are easy to place on top of one another and serve.

Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates using an automated calculator. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.

Nutrition