Ice cream sandesh, finish your meal with this simply cottage cheese dessert.
Thank you so much for your love and support for my Bengali Vegetarian Platter post. I know some of you have tried my spinach sauté recipe and expressed how much you loved it. Thank you! As a food blogger, that’s what makes me happy. As I expressed in my last post, a veg spread in a Bengali home is not complete without sweets.
I am going to give a very simple Bengali sweet recipe, which is popularly known as ‘ice cream Sandesh‘ in Kolkata. I am not sure why its called ice cream Sandesh when there is no cream in it. It is super easy, delicious and sweet which you can make in a jiffy. Do you remember my rasgulla recipe? Some of you tried and told me how easy it was. This one is easier than that.
I added saffron to it, but you can skip it.
I’ve always preferred Bengali sweets made with fresh cottage cheese known as ‘chena’ or paneer. It was much lighter on my tummy than the popular deep fried Gulab Jamun, Jalebis or Ladoo. At the end of the day, they all are sweets. They are made with sugar and full-fat milk and aren’t “healthy.” Some people like to consider their baked goods or desserts as healthy, but I do not. Any food that has raw sugar in it cannot be healthy.
But this is not deep fried so it is gentler on the tummy. Also, the amount of sugar in these sweets can be controlled. In my family, we prefer our desserts lightly sweetened, but you can add as much sugar as you want according to your preference.
A couple of weeks ago my mom prepared this sweet for herself and my dad. She kept telling me how easy it was to prepare but still not motivated to make a batch. Then she and dad started eating it every day while we were Skyping. After a while I submitted to my cravings and made some because I could no longer bear to see them cherishing it day after day. The first time making it I used 1/2-gallon of milk and it came out so yummy that my husband and I finished it in a day like the sweet piggies that we are.
I decided to make a larger batch on the 4th July long weekend.
I made it with rose essence like my mom does, but my husband finds the aftertaste of rose essence to be a little synthetic. I also made it with Organic Vanilla essence which he loved (Well, he is an committed vanilla lover!). So the choice of essence is yours.
For those of you who are not familiar with Bengali sweets, its similar to milk fudge but a lot less sweet.
Ice Cream Sandesh
- 1/2 gallon(1.8 L) whole milk
- 2 lemons, cut in halves
- 1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon + 1 cup water or more
- 1 teaspoon unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons sugar (You can add more if you want)
- 1 teaspoon rose essence
- 1 teaspoon saffron, lightly crushed
- 1/2 teaspoon clarified butter (for brushing)
1. In a non-stick saucepan, over medium-high heat, heat milk (do not use a substitute for full-fat).
Keep stirring otherwise the milk will stick to the bottom. When it starts to boil (make sure it is a rolling boil) set it aside.
2. Cut lemons in half and squeeze the juice into a bowl. Add one tablespoon of water and vinegar.
3. Add lemon-vinegar solution to the milk. It will start coagulating within 3 to 4 seconds.
4. Set a strainer over a mixing bowl and line it with a cheese cloth. Carefully pour the milk curds into the strainer, letting the whey collect in the bowl. Set the whey aside. (You can save the milk whey for making paneer in the future)
5. Add 2 cups (or more) of water to the paneer and wash it well. (Washing it not only helps get rid of the acidity but also helps cool it down)
Gather the four corners of the cheesecloth in your hand and gently squeeze to remove the excess whey.(You do not need to hang the paneer to it cool down as long as you squeeze it well)
6. Set it aside in a big mixing bowl. With the palm of your hands, knead the paneer for 4 to 5 minutes. It should have a fine consistency. Add unsalted butter, sugar, rose essence and saffron strands. Knead for an another 4 to 5 minutes to form a dough.
7. In a stainless steel container, add clarified butter. Brush it to coat it well. Add the paneer dough and press it with your fingers to spread even. Close the container.
8. In a pressure cooker add 1 cup water. Put the stainless container in and close it. Over high heat, heat the pressure cooker until you hear the first whistle. Once the first whistle comes out, lower the temperature to lowest setting and simmer for 10 minutes. (Please use a timer)
9. Set it aside. Release the pressure and open the lid. Take the container out with gloves or a cloth and cool on the cooling rack. After 5 minutes open the lid and chill it in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours. With a sharp knife, cut them into 1 inch square pieces. Serve chilled.
Lovely post and lovely photos
this sounds interesting …..nice clicks dolphia.. bookmarked this
Thank you dear
Such a simple and quick recipe . Thanks for the share 🙂
I think these gorgeous sweet may well curb my craving for milk burfi, they look too good not to be missed!
Thank you! 🙂
That’s quite a lovely take on sandesh. I am going to definitely try this!
Please do 🙂
Can I use microwave instead of cooker?
I do not recommend! The purpose is to steam 🙂 But you can try, taste might not be as great!
Hi, i tried it, initially it was very chewy and after chilling it became very hard,can you please tell that what are the steps where i may have gone wrong.
Dear Priyanka,
Based on your ip-address you’re located in India. What kind of milk did you use? Did you use full-fat milk (NOT DOUBLE TONED)? How long did you knead? where did you chill? How long did you chill? Did you steam?
Hi Dolphia, I have been an ardent fan & follower of your blog for some time & I drool over everything you cook & post…. So today, I tried the Ice cream Sandesh & thanks to you, everyone loved it…! I hashtagged storyofcooks in my photos too…! Hope you won’t mind…!
I like your writings too… They make me soooo nostalgic…! ?
Thank you! I am glad that you liked 🙂
Lovely! I totally understand about the essence aftertaste. Why don’t you try it with rose water instead. It has cleaner taste and to put a twist you can you orange blossom water too. Love bengali sweets!
Suchi,
My husband can’t tolerate rose essence.
Hi Dolphia
Alluring!! Thinking of trying it over the weekend. Just one small query…in step 8 you have written “…and close it…”. It’s the pressure cooker that needs to be closed, right? and the steel container inside is to be placed uncovered?
Thanks
R
Re-read carefully..you have mentioned in step 7 that we need to close the container too. 🙂
R, you need to close the container lid tightly – that’s a MUST!
Thankyou! Since I’m from Kolkata I love Sondesh too. Will definitely try this.
I hope you do!
Will try this recipe too. Tried your nolen gurer rosogolla in pressure cooker and it was a great success. Thanks again.
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