Hi there, my blogging journey began three years back and I was quite skeptical whether I could keep it up or not. I am always busy cooking/baking which is quite labor intensive, not to mention other household chores, shopping, cleaning, taking care of my kids activity, connecting relatives and friends through real life and social media and what not. So here I am today with my 84th post. No matter how busy and tired I am, I enjoy blogging and it has become a wonderful time pass for me. As a home chef I develop recipes with healthy alternatives and enjoy documenting them through photographs. I am blessed to have continuous support and encouragement from family members, friends and readers. I met so many wonderful people through my cooking and blogging. Today I bring you "Bengali Cheesecake" in celebration of my blog's 3rd anniversary.
Sweets play an important role in Indian culture. Any joyous celebrations or religious festivals will be incomplete without sweets, be it home made or store bought. Some sweets in West Bengal are traditionally made at home which never found in sweet shops and what sweet shops sell (mostly chana/cheese based)hardly anyone makes them at home till date. But many of us who settled abroad learned some irresistible Bengali sweets to satiate our cravings.
Sandesh/Cheese Fudge is the easiest of all Bengali sweets. Bengali Cheesecake is just a twist of it. Home made chana/cheese is blended with blanched almond flour, tapioca starch, yogurt, sugar and flavorings, then baked in cake mold in the oven. It's egg less, grain free and gluten free.
Ingredients~
1/2 gallon 2% milk
3/4 cup strained yogurt
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp blanched almond flour
1 tbsp tapioca flour
3/4 cup white granulated sugar or as per taste
4 green cardamom pods ground to a fine powder
A few drops of rose water
A handful of raw pistachios, coarsely ground
Saffron strands
Special equipment~
6 or 7 inch round spring form pan
Microwave safe glass bowl
Blender
Cheese cloth
Strainer
Method~
For the chana~ Boil the milk in a heavy bottom pan and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon so the milk doesn't stick to the bottom. I prefer to boil in the microwave. Pour milk into a microwave-safe container and microwave on high power. When it begins to boil remove the bowl from the microwave. Be careful, bowl would be very hot. Make sure to use oven mitts. Slowly pour vinegar over the boiling milk. Stir very gently with a spoon. Place cheese cloth on the strainer. The moment milk gets curdled separating the whey from the chana, strain it and rinse the chana with cold water for 2-3 minutes or until it becomes completely cool. This stops cooking process, makes chana soft and washes off vinegary smell from the chana. Tie up of the edges of the cheese cloth. Hang it at least 4-5 hours until all the liquid drains from the chana.
Line the bottom of the spring form pan with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Blend chana with all the ingredients except pistachios together in a blender until smooth. Pour mixture into the pan. Bake for 30 minutes then reduce heat to 200 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 1 1/2 hour or until set, tooth pic inserted comes out clean. Keep it in the oven until it gets cooled completely and Garnish with ground pistachios and saffron strands. Refrigerate for couple of hours. Serve chilled. Double this recipe for bigger crowd using 9 - 9 1/2 inch spring form pan and increase baking time accordingly. Happy cooking/baking!
3/4 cup white granulated sugar or as per taste
4 green cardamom pods ground to a fine powder
A few drops of rose water
A handful of raw pistachios, coarsely ground
Saffron strands
Special equipment~
6 or 7 inch round spring form pan
Microwave safe glass bowl
Blender
Cheese cloth
Strainer
Method~
For the chana~ Boil the milk in a heavy bottom pan and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon so the milk doesn't stick to the bottom. I prefer to boil in the microwave. Pour milk into a microwave-safe container and microwave on high power. When it begins to boil remove the bowl from the microwave. Be careful, bowl would be very hot. Make sure to use oven mitts. Slowly pour vinegar over the boiling milk. Stir very gently with a spoon. Place cheese cloth on the strainer. The moment milk gets curdled separating the whey from the chana, strain it and rinse the chana with cold water for 2-3 minutes or until it becomes completely cool. This stops cooking process, makes chana soft and washes off vinegary smell from the chana. Tie up of the edges of the cheese cloth. Hang it at least 4-5 hours until all the liquid drains from the chana.
Line the bottom of the spring form pan with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Blend chana with all the ingredients except pistachios together in a blender until smooth. Pour mixture into the pan. Bake for 30 minutes then reduce heat to 200 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 1 1/2 hour or until set, tooth pic inserted comes out clean. Keep it in the oven until it gets cooled completely and Garnish with ground pistachios and saffron strands. Refrigerate for couple of hours. Serve chilled. Double this recipe for bigger crowd using 9 - 9 1/2 inch spring form pan and increase baking time accordingly. Happy cooking/baking!
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