It’s the first sweet most Indian kids have, and is served as a prasad (blessed food), a breakfast accompaniment or a simple dessert after a meal at home.
Also known as sooji ka halwa, it’s the first sweet most Indian kids have, and is served as a prasad (blessed food), a breakfast accompaniment or a simple dessert after a meal at home. Seero is also the first sweet my daughter ever had when she was a baby. It has a soft, buttery texture with a nutty flavor that comes from the toasted semolina. My version doesn’t have much sugar, so feel free to increase or decrease the amount of sugar to your liking.
Makes 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp (8 g) shelled raw pistachios
- 1 tbsp (9 g) raw almonds
- 1 tbsp (9 g) raw cashews
- ¼ cup (50 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (240 ml) water
- ¼ cup (55 g) ghee
- ½ cup (84 g) semolina
Preparation
- Toast the pistachios, almonds and cashews in a small non-stick skillet over medium heat for four minutes. Pour into a bowl to cool. Once cool, chop the nuts coarsely and set aside.
- In a small saucepan, add the granulated sugar and water. Dissolve the granulated sugar in the water over medium heat. Once all of the sugar has dissolved, set aside.
- In a non-stick skillet, add the ghee and semolina. Cook the mixture over medium-low heat for four to five minutes while stirring. The semolina will turn light brown and give off a nutty fragrance. Pour the granulated sugar water into the semolina and turn up the heat to medium-high. Let it sit for one minute without mixing. The semolina will soak up all of the water and thicken. Stir for one minute and then spoon into the serving bowls. Top with the toasted chopped nuts and serve while warm or at room temperature.
Credit line: Reprinted with permission from Milk & Cardamom by Hetal Vasavada, Page Street Publishing Co. 2019. Photo credit: Hetal Vasavada.