Back with Diwali Special- Kesari Kalakand!

Hello dear fellow bloggers and readers!

Trust all of you are doing well and enjoying the fall with some new recipes.

It feels good to be back to blogging after 2 1/2 months. I was in India and just got back end of Oct. Still kind of settling down. I missed all your delicious recipes but I should start catching up pretty soon.

One more thing, Zestyflavors turned 1 in Sept. Belated Happy Birthday to my blog :)

Its been a good run so far and I hope to continue with more mouth watering recipes.



I hope you all had a wonderful Diwali and May this new year brings good health and prosperity for all of you. We did Diwali pooja last evening and like every year I made sweet at home for the Prasad (Holy Offering) at home. This time its the delicious, milky Kesari Kalakand.



Kalakand is a popular India Sweet made out of Solidified, Sweetend Milk and Cottage Cheese.

Added to these are Saffron (Kesar) for the lovely yellow color and garnished with Almonds and Pistachios.





It's very easy to make Kalakand at home. Everything you need to make this delicious sweet is always available at home and is very quick to make. So whenever you have a sweet craving, you know what to make.





Here is the recipe for you ( Click here for the printable version)



Ingredients:

2 litre milk (divided equally)

1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 tsp cardamom powder

Few strands of saffron

Chopped nuts to garnish (pista, almonds)



Method:



1. Boil 1 litre milk. As it boils, add the vinegar or lemon juice.

2. Switch off the gas once the chenna (fresh curd cheese) settles down. Sieve through muslin cloth, rinse the chenna under cold running water, press out excess water, take in a plate and press down.

3.Put the remaining milk in a heavy pan and boil to half.

4. Add the chenna and boil till the mixture thickens. Stir continuously so it doesn't burn.

5. Add the sugar, few strands of saffron and cardamom powder.

6. Continue to cook, stirring all the while till the mixture turns lumpy ( You will notice that all the liquid is evaporated from the sides once its ready)

7.Set in a greased tray and sprinkle chopped nuts and few more strands of saffron on the top.

8. Allow it to cool for 2 hours before you cut into pieces.



Enjoy the delicious homemade Kesari Kalakand.





Note: All milk based sweets stays fresh for a week in the refrigerator.