Jalebi

Ingredients:

• 2 cups All Purpose Flour • 1-1/2 tbsp Rice flour • 1/4th tsp Baking powder • 2 tbsp Curd • 3 cups Sugar • 2-1/2 cups Water • 1/2 tsp Cardamom (powdered) • Ghee or Vegetable oil for frying

How to make Jalebi:

• Mix the flour, rice flour, baking powder, curd in a bowl. • Mix well, add water and whisk until smooth. • Set aside for about 2 hours to ferment. • Whisk thoroughly before use. • Prepare one string syrup by dissolving sugar in the water. • Just before the syrup is ready add cardamom powder. • Heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan or kadhai. • Pour the batter in a steady stream into the kadhai to form coils. • Make 4-5 at a time. • Deep fry them until they are golden and crisp all over but not brown. • Remove from the kadhai and drain on kitchen paper and immerse in the sugar syrup. • Leave for at least 4-5 minutes so that they soak the syrup. • Take them out of syrup and serve hot. • Jalebi is ready.

Notun Gurer Payash Recipe

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Palm Jaggery (grated) • 3 L Milk • 2 tbsp Basmati Rice Soaked • 1 Bay leaf • 5-6 Green Cardamoms • 10 Almonds (blanched and sliced)

How to make Notun Gurer Payash:

• In a thick bottomed pan, boil the milk and then simmer it in low until it thickens. • Add bay leaf and green cardamoms to the milk and cook for some time. Now add rice to it and stir. • Add jaggery and almonds to it and simmer for five minutes. • Chill and serve.

Pineapple Sandesh Recipe

Ingredients:

• 5-6 Fresh pineapple slices (thick) • 1 ltr Milk • 1 Cup fresh curd • 1/2 Lemon juice • 1 Glass chilled water • 2 tbsp Sugar • 4-5 Drops vanilla essence

How to make Pineapple Sandesh:

•	Chop the pineapple into tiny pieces (after discarding eyes)
•	On low heat, put chopped pineapple in a pan and sprinkle 1 tsp sugar over it.
•	Add 1 tbsp water and cook while stirring till pineapple turns soft.
•	Remove the pan from heat and allow the contents to cool.
•	When cooled, drain it through a colander.
•	Add lemon juice in 1/2 glass water.
•	Pour milk in a deep pan and boil.
•	Add curd and mix gently to curdle.
•	Add lemon-water mixture in it to curdle completely.
•	When transparency appears in the mixture, take off heat and add a glass of chilled water.
•	Let it cool for 2 minutes and drain through a muslin cloth to collect remaining chhena.
•	To cool and wash chhena well, hold the cloth containing chhena like a pouch under running cold water.
•	Press out gently to remove excess water.
•	Now remove the chhena from cloth and put it into a vessel.
•	Add sugar and heat gently, stirring constantly until dissolved.
•	Take off fire and cool to room temperature.
•	Churn this sweet chhena in a mixie until very smooth.
•	Take pineapple in a small cloth and squeeze gently to remove excess water.
•	Blend this in mixie with vanilla essence till crushed.
•	Add this crushed pineapple to chhena and mix well.
•	Spread the mixture on a plate and put it into refrigerator to set and chill.
•	When almost set, press portions of the mixture into desired moulds.
•	Allow to set like a soft pudding.
•	Cut and serve chilled.

PAYAS
Ingredients:
• 2 liters full-cream milk
• 1 can (400 gms) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 tsp cardamom powder
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup Basmati rice
• 50 gm almonds blanched and slivered
• 50 gm raisins
• A few strands of saffron
• Rose petals to garnish (optional)
Preparation:
• Wash the rice well and soak for half an hour in enough water to cover it fully.
• Put the milk, condensed milk and sugar in a deep, thick-bottomed pan and boil. When the milk comes to a boil, add the rice and simmer. Cook till the milk thickens and reduces to half its original volume.
• Add the almonds, raisins and cardamom and cook for 5 more minutes.
• Turn off the fire and add the saffron. Stir well.
• Allow the kheer to cool, then chill.
• Serve cold garnished with rose petals.


NIKUTIR PAYAS
• Ingredients:
Cottage cheese (channa)-500gms, Milk-1 lt.
Sugar-1 kg, Refined flour- 100gm, Sodium bi carbonate-1/2 tsp, Black cardamom- 2-3
• Ghee-for frying, Cinnamon- 4-5, Jaitri (mace)- 2-3

PREPARATION

Kneed properly cheese, flour, cardamom, sodium bicarbonate and 1 spoon of ghee together. Make small elongated balls out of the mixture. Boil ghee and fry the balls till dark brown. Boil milk separately adding mace and cinnamon till it condense. Make syrup boiling sugar in water. Keep the nikhuties in the syrup for 2 hours. Remove the balls with a strainer and dip in boiled milk. Serve after cooling.

receipes

BHAPA DOI
Ingredients:
a.Hung sour curd-----750 gm
b.Condensed milk----1/2 tin(250 gm)
c.Almond---------------1 table spoon full
d.Resin------------------1 table spoon full
e.Cashew Nut---------1 table spoon full
f.Vanilla essence----1/2 spoon full (if required)
Procedure:
Beat the curd with condensed milk .
Add almond ,resin,cashewnut and vanilla essence.
Make a layer of oil (ghee)in the small bowl .
Put the mixture in the bowl and covered it with silver foil,then placed in the double boiler on the oven .
After half an hour the foil is bulged outthat indicate it is set.
Then hot bowl placed on the cold water bowl,when it is cold placed in the refregarator,
Serve cold.

Rasa Kara
Ingridients:
a.Coconut-1/2
b.Khoya-100gm
c.Flour-50 gm
d.White oil-150 gm
e.Ghee-25 gm
f.Sugar syrup-As required.
Procedure---
Grt the coconut ,also grt the khoya,then both coconut and khoya mixed together .Make round shape balls with the mixture.The balls are coated with refind flour.then deep fry the balls ,after that take out the balls and put them into the syrup solution .serve cool.
RASA BARA
Ingradients:
Urad dal-250gm
White oil-150 gm
Soda- a pintch
Sugar syrup –as required
Sweet funnel-10 gm
Procedure
Soaked the dal over night,and make a paste of it,
Add little amount of soda in the paste.
Beat the dal in a cut and fold method
After that make it round shape balls and deep fry in a hot oil
After taking out from the oil place the balls in the sugar syrup.
Serve hot with syrup.

HISTORY OF SWEETS

HISTORY OF BENGALI SWEETS.

West Bengal the easterly state is considered to be the cultural capital of India.The people used to speak in Bengali language.They are on infectiously passionate lot and few things unite them more than their passion for food especially for sweet.

Million of sweet meat are consumed in Bengal.Each will find item of sweet meat in the breakfast,lunch and dinner in Bengali room.

The cuisine of Bengal differs from that of northern ,western or southern part of India,where mustard oil is the cooking medium instead of other oils or coconut oil.The spice differ those used in India ,usually food is mixture of sweet & spice flavor.

• INVENTION OF SANDESH

Bengal which was previously known as "Gour Banga" got its name for abundant production of Gur (jaggary).Sweet is invented experimentally out of sheer necessity from casein(chhanna).During the days of 19th century milkman in West Bengal were left wit plenty of unsold milk.The unsold milk would try sour and form chhanna.To make it palatable molasses and sugar were mix with it.A paste was formed.This uneven soft paste called "Makha",which is the precursor of today's sandesh.

At the time,at breakfast often fried flour products soaked in sweet water namely 'Gaja,Zilapi,khaza,motichur'etc were served.Mr Paran Chandra Nag a sweet meat artist ,father of Bhim Chandra Nag came from a village Janai district Hoogly started a small shop at Bowbazar area in the year 1826 for specially sandesh.He mastered the art of sandesh making by the correct mix of sugar and flour.His patrons were Raja Rammohan Roy,Rani Rashmoni,& Asutosh Mukhopadhya.

• Invention of Rosogolla

In the year 1868 one poor Bengali Sri Nabin Ch Das invented the famous syrupy sweet Rosogolla in a tiny shop at Baghbazar .He struggled but every time he tried o boil the casein balls in syrup ,they disintegreated .A last he discovered the presence of an enzyme in the casein to which he played the trick and finally manage to create the Rossogolla.

Mr.Krishna Ch Das (K.C.DAS) was the only son of Mr.Nabin Chandra Das open a separate shop in 1930 at Jorasanko.K.C.Das also invented the "Rosomalai" and open the branches at Esplanade East and Chittaranjan Avenue.In 1965 sweet meat control order came when shop was closed down ,but incidentally the Esplanade east branch escaped the decree as it sold items other then sweet.The Nobel laureate Tagore was like the Rosogolla.

Today rosogolla from Kolkata has become so famous that foreigners cannot resist the temptation of having them at banquet too.

Canned rosogolla introduce by K.C.Das.

OTHER FAMOUS ESTABLISHMENT

Other institution grew up at that time they were Dwarik Ghose and Ganguram both were 104 years old.

Dwarik Ghose the concept of modern marketing to promote their products in the city.Lila Devi wife of writer Banaphool said that there were two creators of taste in Bengal ,first was Dwarik Ghose & the second was Rabindra Nath Thakur.Dwarik Ghose opend a shop at north kolkata in 1885 and in 1926.he is famous for sandesh pera.

In all there were nine shops in kolkata owned by Dwarik Ghose family.Maharaja of Lalgola,Maharaja of Burdwaman,Raja of Natore,George the V all were customer of Dwarik 'Golapi Pera' ,'Ice Cream Sarbat'.

Ganguram chourasia first establish d a small at maniktala,and gradually from 1885 till now the Ganguram & sons the confectioner is going strong in Bengal.their Vivekananda road branch is the best one in kolkata among the ten branches.Cham cham',Misti Doi',' Rabri 'are very popular in Ganguram.

Nakul Chanra Ghose at bagbazar was famous for its Jhalbhara Talsas sandesh ,later on Sen Mahasoy, Girish Ghose they came into lime light .