Desserts

Vegan Almond Halwa – Instant Pot Badam Halwa (No Oil)

Vegan Almond Halwa – Instant Pot Badam Halwa with No Added Refined oil. No ghee or dairy! 5 Mins active…

  • Ready 20 minutes
  • Serves 4
  • Prep 5 minutes
  • Cook 15 minutes
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Vegan Almond Halwa – Instant Pot Badam Halwa (No Oil)

Its that time of the year! No not Halloween, Its Diwali this weekend! All festivals and holidays seem to all come close to each other. One day I am planning bowl meals and the next I am thinking pumpkin, Indian sweets, desserts, lentil loafs.

This Diwali I bring you 3 variations of Almond Halwa! Indian Halwa can range in texture from a crumble to a set jelly like to soft spoon fudge like. You can make this halwa into any of the textures you like! If you don’t want to use the spoon, roll it up into balls for amazing almond ladoos.

Traditional Badam Halwa recipe often requires making a sugar syrup of certain consistency, then adding almonds(soaked and blended or ground) and cooking for a good number of minutes. This recipe has none of that! No standing around in the kitchen stirring stuff and no checking on the sugar to get the right syrup thread consistency.

Just mix the sugar of choice in the hot water, Add flavors such as cardamom, saffron, rose water or cinnamon. Add in almond flour (blanched works great) and pressure cook. Done and done. With pressure cooking, the sugar, water mixture thickens and the almond flour rehydrates very quickly.  Did I mention, you don’t need any butter or oil as well! Ok lets make this. If you double the recipe(which you will want to), add a minute to the pressure cooking time.

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Vegan Almond Halwa made into almond ladoo

Ingredients for Vegan Almond Halwa

You will need

  • hot water
  • sugar of choice. Use cane sugar for lighter color halwa, jaggery powder, coconut sugar, date sugar or other unrefined sugar of choice.
  • a few drops of lime juice and a good pinch of salt (this adds the ghee/butter like flavor)
  • Flavors: such as whole cardamom seeds, ground cardamom, ground cinnamon,or saffron strands.
  • Almond flour. Use blanched almond flour for lighter colored halwa or use regular with skin almond flour. You can make you own ground almonds by blending raw almonds in a blender. The almonds may tend to get buttery, which is ok. or add a tbsp starch to ensure more flour like result.

First Picture uses 3 tbsp water, whole cardamom seeds and unrefined sugar. The picture below used cane sugar, saffron and 1/2 cup of water.

Depending on the water amount used, you will get the consistency in the first picture or the below picture. The thicker lumpy halwa in the first picture can be rolled into balls.

Kesar Vegan Almond Halwa - Instant Pot Badam Halwa with saffron

How to make Vegan Badam Halwa in the Instant Pot with step pictures

Mix the sugar in hot water. Add lime, salt and cardamom/other flavors and mix in.
Add almond flour and press and mix. Below is halwa with unrefined sugar, cardamom seeds and 3 tbsp water.

Ingredients for our Vegan Almond Halwa Instant Pot Badam Halwa in bowls

For thinner Halwa, use 1/2 cup water. Below is halwa with saffron,more water and cane sugar.

Sugar and saffron mixture for our Almond Halwa in white baking dish
Almond saffron mixture for our Almond Halwa in white baking dish

Add 1.5 cups water to the Instant Pot. Cover the dish with a light lid and place in the pressure cooker. Pressure cook for 5 mins. Natural release.

Scoop into serving bowls. Indian sweets are served in small amounts. So this will serve 4 in Indian serving size, or 2 regular serves.

Garnish with chopped nuts, raisins or chopped dates.
To make ladoos: Chill for half an hour, then roll into balls. Garnish with coconut, finely chopped nuts or seeds of choice.

Vegan Almond Halwa in white baking dish in an Instant Pot

More Indian Sweets

Savory Snacks and Meals:

Vegan Almond Halwa - Instant Pot Badam Halwa in white and grey bowls

Can I make this with other nuts?

Yes, you can make it with cashews, pistachios or macadamia nuts. Use a coarse flour. Cashews will tend to make thicker halwa.

I don’t have almond flour, What do I use?

You can make you own ground almonds by blending raw almonds in a blender. The almonds may tend to get buttery, which is ok. or add a tbsp starch to ensure more flour like result. Or use other nut flour. You cannot substitute grain flour as grain flours absorb a lot more liquid. Similarly coconut flour will absorb a lot of liquid and will not work.

Can I make the Halwa directly in the Instant Pot

No, the almonds will burn with the direct heat.

Vegan Almond Halwa - Instant Pot Badam Halwa in white bowl

Recipe

Vegan Almond Halwa (Instant Pot Badam Halwa) Oil-free

Vegan Almond Halwa & Almond Ladoo - Instant Pot Badam Halwa with no added refined oil. No ghee or dairy! 5 Mins active time. 6 Ingredients! Gluten-free Grain-free Soy-free Recipe. Makes 4 Indian size servings

  • Serves 4
  • Prep 5 minutes
  • Cook 15 minutes
  • Total 20 minutes

Ingredients

  • 3 to 8 tbsp water ((3 Tbsp water for crumbly Halwa and for ladoos, 1/2 cup(8 tbsp) water for thin pudding like halwa, 1/3 cup water for thick halwa))
  • 1/3 cup sugar ((cane sugar,conut sugar, or jaggery powder))
  • 3 drops of lime juice
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • Flavors: cardamom seeds from 4 green cardamom pods(see note), or 6 to 8 saffron strands, or 1/8 tsp cinnamon, or 1/2 tsp rose water
  • 1 cup almond flour

Instructions

  1. 1

    Add hot water to a baking dish or pyrex** that fits your instant pot. Add the sugar and mix in. Add the lime juice, salt and flavors(cardamom, saffron etc) and mix in. (See notes for stove top)

  2. 2

    Add almond flour and press and mix. With less water, you will have to press and mix so there are no dry lumps. if making the thinner halwa, use a whisk to mix in the almond flour.

  3. 3

    Add 1.5 cups of water to the instant pot. Place the dish in the steamer basket and lower into the instant pot. Cover with a light lid or foil.

  4. 4

    Close the lid and pressure cook for 5 minutes at high pressure. Let the pressure release naturally.

  5. 5

    Carefully remove the dish from the instant pot. Garnish with chopped nuts, raisins or chopped dates and serve.

  6. 6

    To make ladoos: Chill almond halwa made with 3 tbsp water, for half an hour, then roll into balls. Roll in coconut, finely chopped nuts or seeds of choice, or drizzle with chocolate for a halloween treat.

  7. 7

    Store: Store on the counter for the day. Refrigerate for upto 5 days.

Notes

** You can also use the steel insert. The thicker pyrex or baking dish cooks more evenly and the halwa doesnt stick as much to them. Green Cardamom: Use a knife to slice open the cardamom pod. Remove the black/grey seeds and break them into individual seeds if they are clumped. You can also use 1/4 tsp ground cardamom instead. Stove Top: Use 1/2 cup water, add to a skillet over medium heat with sugar, flavor,salt and lime. Bring to a boil. Cook for another minute. Then fold in the almond flour. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook for 5 to 10 mins or until desired consistency. Stir occasionally. Almond flour: You can make your own almond flour by blending raw almonds in a blender. Add a tbsp of starch so that the almond flour does not get too buttery. You can also use other other nut flour such as macadamia, cashew, pistachio. Variations: Use half coconut shreds(small shred, process in blender to make small shreds for best result) and half almond to make coconut almond ladoo. Add 2 tsp vegan butter for decadent halwa. Nutrition is for 1 serve

Nutrition

  • Calories219 kcal
  • Carbohydrates23 g
  • Protein6 g
  • Fat14 g
  • Saturated Fat1 g
  • Sodium73 mg
  • Fiber3 g
  • Sugar18 g
  • Calcium59 mg
  • Iron1 mg