Nolen Gur er Sondesh / Khajur ke Gud ke Sandesh

Once you have tasted Bengali sweets made with Date Palm Jaggery (Khajur ka Gud), you can not go back to regular sugar. The sap for this jaggery is collected in winter and sweets made with this are available only in winter. I had a slab at home and decided to make some preseason Sondesh with it for Diwali. The recipe is adapted from Bongmom. 

Ingredients:

For chenna

2 litres milk (higher the fat content, the creamier the Sondesh )

1 teaspoon citric acid

For Sondesh 

1 1/2 cups chenna

3/4 cup date palm jaggery, grated

Pistachios for garnish 

To make the chenna, bring the milk to a boil. Add the citric acid and stir till it curdles. Take it off the heat. Line a strainer with muslin cloth and drain the chenna. Bring together the edges of the cloth to make a ball. Let it hang for about 1 hour for the whey to drain out. You can also put it under a heavy object to release the whey. 

Take this fresh chenna and knead it till it becomes smooth. Add the grated jaggery (if you eat less sweet, add only 1/2 cup of jaggery) and knead again till all the jaggery is incorporate into the chenna. Check for sweetness, if you like it sweeter add more jaggery. 

Now transfer this mixture onto a pan and cook it on medium heat while stirring. After about 5-7 minutes, the mixture will have lost some of the moisture but it will not be dry. At this stage, remove from heat. Form small balls of the mixture and garnish with pistachio while it is still warm. 

Serve warm or at room temperature. You can store it in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.