Rosogolla - a sweet Bengali recipe

Blogging Marathon Week 2 Day 3

Rosogolla

When I think of Bengali cuisine the first thing that comes to mind is the array of Bengali sweets and the rosogolla stands up tall. So could not complete the Bengali recipes Blogging Marathon without this delicious Bengali sweet that is made from fresh paneer(cottage cheese).

The many experiments in my kitchen have definitely taught me one thing, no dish is as easy as it looks and making Indian sweets definitely requires a lot of patience and practice. The rosogolla has been eluding me for some time, and several failed attempts and frustrating moments later have finally managed to get it right. There are two very important things to keep in mind while making the rosogolla. First, once the paneer is done take it off the stove and drain it immediately so that it does not cook any further. What you need is fresh soft paneer to get good results. Secondly, the sweetness of the sugar syrup should be right so that the rasagullas take in the right amount of sweetness. Here is the recipe for the Rasagulla.

Ingredients for rosogolla:
Milk - 2 litres(I could make 23 rasagullas with this)
Lemon juice - 1.5 tbsp
For the sugar syrup:
Sugar - 1 cup
Water - 1 and 3/4 cup
Method for making the rosogolla:
1- Pour the milk into a pan and let boil. When it comes to a boil, add in the lime juice. You will see the milk curdling and separating into paneer and whey. Take off the stove and drain the paneer using a muslin cloth(do not throw away the whey as it is highly nutritious and can be used instead of water to make the dough for your rotis/naan).
2- Drain the paneer and hang over the kitchen sink tied in the cloth to let the excess whey too drain off. Let hang for abour 30 minutes.
3- For making the sugar syrup, take a pan and add in the sugar and water. Let boil. When boiled, make medium sized(lemon-sized) balls from the paneer and put one by one into the sugar syrup. Cover with a lid and cook for 10-15 minutes. Remove lid every few minutes. You will see that they have puffed up well. Turn off the stove. Serve after 2-3 hours so that the sugar syrup is well absorbed. You may serve it chilled too.

Check out the Blogging Marathon page for the other Blogging Marathoners doing BM#22