Kesar Rasmalai - Diwali Special !!


Diwali is one of the most popular Indian festival and would always remain to be so. Each region in India has a special way of celebrating it; the day after Diwali also heralds the beginning of a New financial year for some of the Hindus. So here's a beautiful and rich-looking Indian bengali sweet recipe that I am sure many of you must have tasted in Indian restaurants - the Kesar Rasmalai!

Rasmalai is by far the most cherished indian sweet in the whole country, superceeded only by tough competitiors like "Gulab Jamun" and "Rasgulla". People also think that its hard to make rasmalai at home, which I don't think is true. Yes, the end result does depend on the "channa" (recipe below) that you use, so you should either make it at home, or buy from a good sweet-shop. So go ahead and try my Kesar Rasmalai and see how you can woo your friends and family with this winning recipe!

Ingredients
4 cups whole milk for channa
1 cup sugar
3 cups of water
6-7 strands of saffron mixed in 3 tbsp warm milk
Cardamom, pistachio, almonds - slivered
lemon juice
3 cups whole milk (for the ras)
4-5 tbsp sugar (for the ras)

Method
First keep the 3 cups of milk for ras to boil until it thickens. Take a small cup, fill it with 3 tbsp milk; warm it in the microwave for 10 seconds, then add 6-7 strands of saffron to it and rub them etween your fingers to extract orange-yellow color and saffron flavor. Then add this to the boiling milk. Also add the sugar for the ras to it and add cardamom, pista and almond to it.Once the milk is reduced to about half it's size, remove from flame and set aside to cool in another container filled with cold water or ice cubes.

Next, bring the 4 cups of milk to boil. Once it starts boiling, reduce the flame, and add the lemon juice to it while stirring continuously to curdle the milk. Stir with a spoon, then slowly remove just the solid part, called the "chhanna" and tie it in a muslin or thin cloth. Keep it covered for at least a couple of hours. Hang the "potli" under the sink or put the cloth-covered chhana in a bigger bowl which will collect the water dripping from the mixture. The intention here is to separate just the solid curdled milk residue from the water or liquid part.

After 2 hours, remove the channa from the cloth. Take it in a bowl and mash well with your hands to form a smooth mixture. This will look like "Paneer" or cottage cheese, and you have to rub it between your palms a lot to make the mixture really smooth. Then make around 15 small-sized of balls or discs out of it. Again, make sure you keep the edges as smooth as possible. Now take a pressure cooker and add 3 cups of water and 1 cup of sugar. Mix well to form the sugar syrup. Add the balls in the pressure cooker and let it cook for two whistles.

Once the cooker has cooled down, remove the cooked balls. Press them gently between your palms to remove excess water, then arrange them in a serving dish. Pour half of the ras/milk mixture over them and let them soak into it for at least an hour. Refrigerate the remaining milk.

When ready to serve, pour the cold milk over the balls. Garnish with more chopped or slivered pistachios and almonds and dazzle your family and friends with this invigorating and delicious dessert! I am sure that Kesar Rasmalai will surely delight your guests! Happy Diwali to one and all!!

More Indian Sweet Recipes:
Dry-Fruit Basundi
Malpua with Rabdi


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23 comments :

AnuSriram said...

Looks perfect mansi... Hope u had a wonderful diwali!

Anonymous said...

This is a hot favourite with our kids..we ahve it at indian restaurants every time..thanks for the recipe mansi!

-Anju

Rina said...

Mansi, That bowl is so yummy looking. I like the fact that rasmalai is not so sweet and yet a treat. Thanx for the reciep yaar.

Anonymous said...

I love rasmalai, yummy sweet for the festival. Happy Deepavali Mansi.

Anonymous said...

Rasmalai is looking great manasi. Have a happy diwali and enjoy.

Anonymous said...

I am always so awed by the thought of making these at home as its so much work! but festivals are special occasions and one of these days I'll have to pull myself together to start making things that need work:)

Have a Happy Diwali Mansi!

-Anjali

Anonymous said...

A very happy diwali to you and yours!

Thanks for the lovely entry!

bee said...

beautiful dish. happy diwali to you and yours.

Kalva said...

Mansi! Rasmalai is simply delicious! Happy Diwali dear!

Cynthia said...

Hope you're enjoying the festival.

Kribha said...

Whoa Whoa Mansi...slow down your speed of posting these delicacies. For a person with a strong sweet-tooth like me your dishes are doing no good at all. I end up eating more and more:(

Latha Narasimhan said...

Looking lovely mansi!:)All bengali sweets are welcome in my home!:)

Finla said...

Wow my hubby and daughter loves this rasmalai.I am not showing them this post otherwise they will be behind me to make it for them

Bindiya said...

Great Mansi, u got me drooling!enjoy urself this fesive season!

musical said...

Happy Diwali to you and your family too, dear!

Shammi said...

Mansi, that does look deelish! :)

Richa said...

hey mansi, saal mubarak !

Uj said...

Hi Mansi,
I tried your Rasmalai last weekend and it came out really well. Made it twice on the same day infact.Thanks a lot for this recipe and wonderful step by step instructions. This is a keeper.

Anonymous said...

Hi Mansi,

Tried this today as we were having some guests and it came out AWESOME !!!

They couldnt believe it was home-made.. thanks so much for the wonderful recipe.. a definite keeper !!

Mala

Mansi said...

thanks so much for your input Mala, and also for trying out my recipes:) I'm very happy it worked for you and your guests!

keep visiting gal!:)

John said...

Really Good Sweet, I Like it. Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights. It is celebrated in a big way in India. This festival is celebrated for five continuous days, with the third day being celebrated as the main Diwali. On this day who can not reach india or can't celebrate this festival with their relative they send diwali gifts to india and celebrate this festival.

Anonymous said...

hi mansi, just wanted to know, can i make the chenna balls , syrup and the milk syrup a day or two in advance and assemble them an hour before serving, will they keep soft and fresh,pls let me know

Unknown said...

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Thanks :)