Hathi Ghoda Palki !

Jay Kanhaiyya Laal Ki !

The birth festival of lord krishna is here once again and we are in the joyous spirit of celebrating every bit of its unique escapade. To make this celebration more exciting, here is the recipe of Bengal’s ice cream shondesh which I have prepared for the occasion. As our beloved bal gopal is very fond of butter, milk and all the milk products, sweets made out of milk or cottage cheese always top the list. Bengali shondesh of pure chhena are something that lures every sweet lover. Being a bengali, l love to explore shondesh varieties more & more. You may find quite a few shondesh recipes in my blog and the reason for this is simply because my love for shondesh is eternal & progressive.

This icecream shondesh is very unique & is available only in Bengal. Although I never tasted it before, but the name itself always fascinates me. So I searched for quite a few recipes and then tried it in my own way.The result was really satiating. It is a very delicate shondesh, soft and light in texture similar to an ice-cream & so may have been named as ice-cream shondesh. To enhance its flavour, I thought of serving my ice cream shondesh with beetroot khoya halwa which can also serve as an offering for our beloved lord krishna. The two when combined together just gives you an ecstatic feeling longing for more & more. This dessert is quite easy to prepare and requires only a little preparation in advance, making it a perfect choice for all your special occasions. It is also named as Bhapa or steamed shondesh in Bengal. Its alluring looks will also attract the kids.The only thing we need to remember is that it is always served chilled for relishing it to the fullest. Now scroll below for the recipe that you may want to try 😊:

RECIPE :

Ingredients:

I. For Ice-cream Shondesh : –

1. Chhena – Around 350 gm or chhena from 1 litre full fat milk (freshly made).
2. Powdered sugar – ½ cup.
3. Cardamom powder – ½ tsp.
4. Rose water or essence – ½ tsp.
5. Milk – ½ cup.
6. Almonds, cashews, pistachio (finely chopped) – As per choice.

II. For Beetroot halwa : –

1. Beetroot (grated) – 1 medium sized.
2. Khoya/Mawa – 75 g
3. Cashews & almonds (chopped) – A few.
4. Rose Water or essence – 1/4^th tsp.
5. Cardamom powder- ½ tsp.
6. Sugar – 4 to 5 tsp.
7. Refined oil – 1 tsp.

Preparation:

I. For Ice-cream Shondesh: –

1. Boil milk & curdle the milk using lemon juice or vinegar, The detailed preparation of chhena can be found in y previous post of kheertua.
2. Take the freshly made chhena in a bowl, disintegrate & keep aside.
3. In a blending jar, take the disintegrated chhena, add cardamom powder, rose water & 4 tsp. of milk.
4. Blend the miture once to make a smooth paste or batter.
5. Open the lid, add the remaining amount of milk and give it another spin.
6. Take out the creamy, light batter with a consistency similar to the cake batter and pour it nicely in a previously greased tray or flattened bowl and pour it nicely in a previously greased tray or flattened bowl & tap the sides slightly to level up.
7. Garnish with chopped nuts & sprinkle some more rose water.
8. Boil water in a steamer or any large pan with a lid after placing a wire stand or separator in it. (Note: Adjust the level of water so that it does not enter the chhena batter while boiling and also do not dry out completely. (Note: You may also cover the bowl or tray with aluminium foil to prevent water from entering).
9. Put the batter pan over the wire stand, cover the steamer with lid and steam for 35 to 40 minutes over a low flame.
10. After 35 minutes, uncover & check the shondesh by inserting a tooth pick in it. If it comes out clean, your shondesh is cooked or you have to steam it for another 5 to 7 minutes.
11. Switch off the flame, uncover & wait for few minutes as your pan is still very hot.
12. Bring it down from the steamer & let it cool down.
13. Let it come to the room temperature.
14. Cover & put the bowl in fridge and refrigerate overnight or for 6-7 hours.
15. Take out from the fridge and give it a standing time of 5 minutes.
16. Put a tray or dish over it and turn the bowl upside down.
17. Gently, tap the base of the bowl so that it can come out over the dish or tray. Do this step carefully as this shondesh is very delicate and may crumble easily.
18. Take a sharp and straight knife or cutter and gently cut out squares from it.
19. Refrigerate again and serve chilled.
20. Your shondesh is now ready for serving.

II. For Beetroot Halwa:-

1. Heat oil in a pan, add the grated beetroot & saute over a low to medium flame, till it imparts some aroma & your beetroot is almost cooked.
2. Add khoya/mawa and little water or milk to make it moist & mix till the khoya blends well with the beetroot over a low flame.
3. Add sugar and little cardamom powder & mix everything nicely over a low flame.
4. Let the sugar melt completely.
5.  Add chopped nuts & rose water and the remaining cardamom powder, and mix them together.
6. The mixture will leave the sides of your pan. Put off the flame and bring it down.
7. Serve warm halwa and spread it over a greased tray, level up the surface and cut out squares of beetroot halwa and store for later.
8. To pair your halwa with ice-cream shondesh, take one beetroot halwa square over a tray, gently put an icecream shondesh over it, which should be similar in size with it.
9. Gently press using your finger & keep it in the fridge to set them together nicely.

Now, take out & serve the chilled ice-cream shondesh along with a boost of this beetroot khoya halwa to elevate the divinity of flavour of this delicious ice cream shondesh.

Courtesy : https://youtu.be/pYtb56GN550?feature=shared