Ooey Gooey Baked Sondesh

Many people equate West Bengal as the land of ever abundant sweets. Every street corner has their own sweet shop which caters to local. While it is true that there is no dearth of varieties of sweets in Bengal, I personally think making sweets is a higher form of art, which am yet to master. The sweet makers are traditionally named as Modaks or Haluikars. I can recall images where I have seen those artisans kneading the soft cottage cheese for hours in big wooden plates.  Back in 90's people used to hire Haluikars  to make sweets for special celebration in the household - like marriage or rice ceremony. Right from making cottage cheese, transporting them to a facility, kneading and finally giving them shape, the art of making Bengali dessert is no easy-peasy game.

 However, most of my dessert making repertoire is limited to those varieties, which are no fuss and quick. One of them is Baked Sondesh, which, truth be told , is a one, which is a kind of cheat recipe, hence you will never find this in the authentic sweet shops of West Bengal. But, oh yes, this recipe serves my purpose!!

I made Baked Sondesh last week as a part of the Holi festival, why don't you give it a try?
Recipe for Baked Sondesh ( Makes about 15 Sondesh):

Ingredients:

Whole milk - 1 liter
Freshly squeezed lemon juice 4 tsp
Condensed milk - 3/4 th can
Milk powder - 1 cup
Almond nuts - 1/2 cup
Cardamom pods - 6
Mango pulp - 6-7 tsp ( optional)

Process :

•  Boil milk in simmering heat in a heavy bottom pan. Once the milk starts boiling, add lemon juice. Keep stirring so that the juice gets evenly distributed. The milk will soon separate out to cottage cheese ( or chana)
• Put off the flame and let the mixture rest for a while so that it is easy to handle.
• Take a cheesecloth and strain the whole mixture. Also give it a quick rinse over clear water so that there is so no smell of lemon juice.
• Squeeze out the excess water and let the mixture hang for couple of hours so that the extra water drips out.
• Soak almond nuts in warm water and grind them to a smooth mixture ( use milk to facilitate grinding)
• Now in a big pan assemble cottage cheese, almond paste. Add condensed milk. Mix everything thoroughly.
• Use a porcelain/glass dish to bake ( drizzle oil on the baking dish and spread them evenly)
• Take a water bath  ( Fill up a bigger dish with water and let the Baked Sondesh be in a smaller dish immersed in it)
• Bake at 250 deg C for 40-45 mins, or until they turn slightly warm
• Once you take out, the mixture will be still wobbly, let it cool down to room temp
• Let it rest inside the fridge for 15-20 mins, so that it becomes firm, easier to handle
• Garnish it with raisins, or poke a hole in the middle and fill up with Mango pulp!

Ooey Gooey Baked Sondesh is ready!

Aloo chaat from Nepal

Do you recognize that sometimes our taste bud gets influenced by our friend circle? It is true that our friends modify our culinary journey in a meaningful way, like my friend B, from Nepal. Until I met B, my knowledge about Nepali cuisine was limited to Momo and Thukpas, but now I have been enlightened a bit more. Few week's back B made this chaat on the eve of her daughter's Annaprashan and I was instantly smitten by this chaat ( or Aloo Achaar as they say in Nepalese cuisine)!
But hang on, Chaat and Achaar are not the same variety as per North Indian vocabulary. While Chaat can be loosely translated as tangy salad, Achaar on the other hand means pickle. Am not going to the debate of whether this dish should be called as Chaat or Achaar, but the truth be told, this is quite a "pick me up dish "according to me!

What intrigues me in the Nepali cuisine is their generous use of Seasame seeds. Roasted Seasame flavors delicious and I could never imagine that Seasame seed paste will go well with Aloo-Kakri chaat ( a salad of potato-cucumber). You might say there is nothing novel about a potato-cucumber chaat, but wait till you taste this dish and decide for yourself!

Apart from the nutty flavor, this dish boasts the goodness of green Moong sprouts, Pea sprouts! One might also add  crunchy carrots to further elevate the goodness!!

Without further ado here is the recipe :

Ingredients: ( serves 3-4 )

• Medium size potatoes 2 ( boiled and cubed, take care to ensure that the potatoes doesn't become mushy)
• 1 cucumber - cubed
• 1/4 cup Moong sprouts
• 1/4 cup Pea sprouts ( see notes on sprouts)
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• One lemon
• 1/4 cup roasted Seasame seeds
• Chillies - 2 ( finely chopped)
• Rock salt
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• A pinch of fenugreek seeds

Process :

• Take a big bowl and combine all the veggies.
• Add lemon juice and rock salt and mix up everything
• Roast Seasame seed until they are lightly golden. Grind it to a fine powder and add it to the veggies
• Heat oil in a pan. Once it is ready, add Fenugreek seeds and lightly roast it. ( Don''t let it get heated too long, otherwise it will turn too bitter). Add this Fenugreek laced oil on the top of Chaat and mix everything together.

Serve at room temperature!

Notes :

Sprout forming is more easier when the temperature is around 70 F or mid 20 C. Soak a handful of Moong beans or Peas in water. Let it rest overnight. Once the Beans have swollen, take them away from water, wash well and let it rest again for another night. The Beans will germinate and sprout out.