Chena poda | Indian cheese/paneer cake | kalakand | Healthy Dessert

Hi friends..sharing my firs attempt at chena poda..well loved by the kid and all:)

Recipe source: 

here and here

Ingredients

1 Cup home made cottage cheese (paneer)

3 tablespoons semolina

½ Cup Powdered Sugar 

½ teaspoon baking powder

5-6 cardamoms powdered

2 tablespoons raisins

5-6 cashew nuts chopped

5-6 pistachios sliced

2 tablespoons sugar for making caramel

Method for preparing cottage cheese

Ingredients

3 liters full cream milk

¼ cup lemon juice

Method

Boil the milk. Reduce the heat.

Add lemon juice to the boiled milk. Stir. The milk will curdle. Boil for a minute. Turn off the heat.

Put the curdled milk in a muslin cloth. Drain out the water.

Place the muslin bag with cottage cheese under the running tap.This will remove the sour whey. Squeeze out the water. Hang the muslin cloth for 15 minutes.

Method for preparing Chhena Poda

Transfer the cottage cheese to a plate. Mash well with hands till smooth. Add powdered sugar. Mix well. If the mixture feels too dry, add a teaspoon of milk.

Add semolina. Mix well. Cover and leave for 15 minutes.

In the mean time, take two tablespoons sugar in the baking tin, hold it over the flame. Turn off the heat when the sugar just begins to caramelize. Tilt the pan so that it spreads all over the base and sides evenly. Leave it to cool.

Knead the cottage cheese mixture again. Add powdered cardamom, raisins and cashews. Add baking powder. Mix well.

Put the mixture in the baking pan. Level the top.

Bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees C for 55 minutes or till the top turns brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Run a knife through the sides and invert it on the rack immediately. If delayed, the sugar in the base of the pan becomes hard and chhena poda sticks to the bottom.

Refrigerate when cold.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#43.

Sending this entry to Valli's Kids Delight" Healthy Desserts" happening at Cooking with Sapna.