Kalakand

On Krishnatashtami, we celebrate the Bhagavan Krishnas birthday. The scriptures portray bala (baby) Krishna as a happy and mischievous child with boundless energy and great fondness for all things mil . !il , yogurt, buttermil , cream, ghee, venna, and mil based sweets are lovingly offered to bala Krishna during this festival time. "n our family, for pooja neivedyam we prepare venna (the cream layer from yogurt) and pala ova or ala and. Kala and, an e#$uisite mil %based sweet preparation is an interesting process. &oncentrated mil called khoya and fresh paneer called chhana are mi#ed and simmered together with sugar to a lu#urious thic , firmness. The mi#ture is cooled, then cut to s$uares and garnished with pistachios. That is ala and of my hometown 'andyala. (s you can imagine, the ala and has a rich taste. )epending on the hoya%chhana ratio and sugar variety, ala and is * types. Milky-white kalakand: Three parts chhana and one part hoya together simmered slowly with white sugar for hours. &ontinuous stirring and low heat coo ing result in a pure%white ala and. "ts a labor intensive process and usually you will find this mil y%white ala and at "ndian sweet shops. Coral-pink kalakand. &hhana and Khoya are in +,+ or +,- ratio and unprocessed, old%world style red sugar (turbinado) sweetens and colors the ala and. This is the type we prepare at our home. Both varieties taste e$ually delicious, but " prefer the &oral%pin colored ala and. .ere is how " made it for Krishnashtami prasadam. Recipe:
(ta es about *%- hours. !a es about +/ to *0 *1*#+ s$uare shaped Kala and)

2 gallon whole mil and 3uice from one lime % to prepare chhana 2 gallon whole mil % to prepare Khoya

* to *2 cups % unprocessed cane sugar (turbinado) + cup, shelled and unsalted pistachios % coarsely crushed for garnish 4ilver or gold foil to decorate the ala and * big, sturdy, wide based pots 5ots of patience. 6amily or friends on the side definitely will help and ma e the process more en3oyable.

Chhana for Kalakand 1. Milk: 7lace the pots on stove%top and add half gallon mil to each pot to prepare chhana and hoya simultaneously. Chhana: "n one pot, once the mil starts to boil, reduce the heat. (dd the lime3uice (lemon 3uice) and stir. 8ithin minutes, you will see small clouds li e white curds floating on top. 8ait till they get bigger (if they dont, add some more lime3uice and stir) and the whey below gets less mil y. This process ta es few minutes, so wait at least five minutes. 4witch off the heat and let it stand for few more minutes. Then pour the whole thing immediately into a clean muslin or cheese%cloth in a colander, over a sin . 9ather the curds by twisting the cloth into a firm lump. The fresh paneer called chhana is ready.

Simmering Milk .. Thickened milk (khoya) after 2 Simmering Hours Khoya: "n another pot, once the mil starts to boil and lower the heat and simmer, until the mil gets thic and is reduced to about one fourths of the original $uantity. This is hoya. (8hile thic ening, stir fre$uently. &are must be ta en that mil does not stic to the bottom of the pot and burn:blac .) 2. Add Sugar: To the hoya, add the freshly prepared chhana (paneer) and sugar. On low heat, coo , continuously mi#ing, until the hoya%chhana mi#ture thic ens to a waterless%firm lump. This

process ta es about ;< minutes to one hour. 3. Decorate: 7our the firm mi#ture onto a plate. 5evel it evenly and allow to cool completely. The mi#ture thic ens and firms up even more on cooling. 8ith a nife, cut the cooled ala and to s$uares or diamonds. 7lace the gold or silver foil on ala and and sprin le pistachios. Offer the 3ewel li e decorated ala and neivedyam to Bhagavan Krishna and en3oy the prasadam pieces with family and friends. Kala and stays fresh up to a wee when refrigerated.

Kalakand Cooling

Kalakand Cut to Squares

Kalakand e!eled !ith "istachios # for $ndian S!eets %&%