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Saturday, September 20, 2008

MBP: Say Cheese: Microwave Kalakand

Since the day I saw this recipe, I have been wanting to try it. But due to work and the daily grind, I was not getting the motivation to do it and eventually it just got lost in my big list of bookmarks. Then, a couple months back I saw it again here, and knew that this time I had to make it, come what may. Nothing was going to stop me now. The arrival of Ganesha and his ten day stay, gave me ample opportunity and enthusiasm to finally make this delicious Microwave Kalakand, originally posted by Sandeepa of Bong Mom's CookBook.

The recipe is so simple and the results so amazing! This recipe is a keeper. Not only did our friends enjoy this treat but so did their one year old who would not stop eating the Kalakand! Thanks Sandeepa....your Microwave Kalakand recipe was an excellent Neivedya for Ganpati and I am sure he was just as pleased as we were. :)

After making the Kalakand, I couldn't resist clicking some photos (aadat se majboor ;)) and then it struck me that this was a very good candidate for MBP: Say Cheese that is being hosted by Siri of Siri's Corner this month, and is the brainchild of Coffee of The Spice Cafe.

This recipe calls for Ricotta cheese which is a very popular fresh cheese used in Italian cuisine. After reading a little about this cheese, I realized that its not technically considered a cheese as its made from whey that is a byproduct of cheese making. But to me its still cheese and a very light one at that. It contains only around 5 % of fat per Wikipedia. More info here. Its a great substitute for Khawa or Khoya too, which is a key ingredient for a lot of the Indian Mithais like burfis and pedhas and of course, gulabjamuns.

I have not made any changes to the recipe except that I skipped the pistachios as I did not have any at hand. I just sprinkled a few strands of saffron once the Kalakand was ready. So lets "Say cheese"!

Ingredients:
1 14 oz can of condensed milk
1 15oz jar of ricotta cheese ( i used part skim ricotta)
2-3 veldode (cardamoms)
saffron
1 microwaveable dish

Method:
Empty the can of condensed milk into the microwaveable dish. Take ricotta cheese in equal quantity as that of the condensed milk. Sandeepa gives a great idea to do this...fill the can of condensed milk with ricotta cheese to get the same quantity. Add this to the condensed milk and mix well. Now microwave the mixture for 5 minutes, making sure that it does not boil over. Then heat for another 5 minutes, checking after each minute and stirring to avoid any spillage. Cook this mixture till it reaches a grainy consistency with not a lot of moisture. One way to test if its ready is to take a spoon and if the mixture sticks to the spoon, continue to cook. If nothing sticks to the spoon and yet the mixture lumps together, you are ready to set it. This whole process took me just about 13 minutes, so its really fast. Once you have reached the right consistency, remove from the microwave and add the cardamom powder to it. Mix and then leave it to set for an hour. Garnish with chopped pistachios or saffron strands.
Cut into squares before serving and be ready to be transported to heaven!

20 comments:

Srivalli said...

That looks absolutely delicious Tee...now that you have got to work with your mw, get some chocolates on the way ok..

and hey did I tell you that your new template looks so neat!

Vibaas said...

ooh yum yum. i love kalakand and this seems to be so easy. will be a regular at my house from now on ;-)

Laavanya said...

I just saw this a while ago on Cham's blog too. How delicious & easy.

Cham said...

What a coincident i posted the same sweet yest :) Perfect!

Siri said...

Kalakand looks delish Tee! Thanks for your awesome entry!

Cheers,
Siri

Uma said...

yummy! looks so mouth-watering.

Sheetal Kiran said...

How so very simple ... and so very very delicious Tee! and in 13 minutes too!! I am currently off most dairy products as my wee one is allergic to cow's milk :( I am going to try this as soon as I am back on my regular diet :D

Supriya said...

Yummy...I've been afraid to try this, but am encouraged seeing your post. BTW, did u change the layout? Its looking good.

Usha said...

This looks delicious...I have seen this at the other blogs too....would love to try this :)

Manasi said...

thats so pretty! i remember my mom making kalakand whenever the milk went bad...it happened less frequently than i hoped :) this looks too good to be done in so short a time.

Priyanka said...

thats one yummy microwave recipe Tee.... i have all the ingredients except ricotta cheese at home, so may be i will try it out this weekend.

TheCooker said...

Isn't this such a fab recipe?

BTW, the new look looks fresh!

Sia said...

did u say microwave kalakand? boy, i love it already!

Pooh said...

I have this one bookmarked!

Pravs said...

looks yum and easy to make.

Shreya said...

sweets always welcome, and nothing like festivals to enjoy them. looks delicious. I have not been visiting this space for a while now, have to catch up. pumpkin kheer looks delicious.

Uj said...

Delicious one.. I love kalakand :)

Unknown said...

Tee, just cooling the first batch of kalakand - thanks to your detailed instructions (especially when to stop heating), all went smoothly - can hardly wait for it to cool down!
Happy Diwali!

Sushma Mallya said...

wow looks so nice and tht is a very eaasy recipe will surely give a try as this is my fav sweet:)

workhard said...

WOW!!!

That looks delicious. i was wondering where you got the Ricotta cheese.. cause i looked for it in the stores and they didnt even know what it was.. then u substitued it for Khowa...


Great post..



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