Recipe: Delicious Kalakand (Indian style ricotta cheesecake)

Kalakand (Indian style ricotta cheesecake). Kalakand- this kalakand recipe made with ricotta cheese is the easy version of the traditional kalakand, a milk based Indian fudge. It's crumbly, moist and just melts in your mouth. "Kalakand' is a traditional Bengali sweet dish that is made up of 'chaana' or homemade cheese that is kneaded fine. It's a long process, and often involves long arduous periods of kneading to achieve perfection.

Our ancestral home in its hay days welcomed hundreds of guests with open arms A semi-homemade version of the traditional Indian sweet Kalakand. Kalakand is a rich milk cake. one of the popular Indian sweets. The traditional way of making kalakand sweet is a long one and takes some time. You can have Kalakand (Indian style ricotta cheesecake) using 5 ingredients and 12 steps. Here is how you cook that.

Ingredients of Kalakand (Indian style ricotta cheesecake)

1. You need 600 gm of whole milk Ricotta cheese or paneer from freshly curdled milk.
2. It's 400 gm of condensed milk.
3. Prepare 1 teaspoon of Cardamom powder or to taste.
4. It's 1 teaspoon of rose water or to taste.
5. You need of Slivered almonds for garnish.

Milk is curdled a bit with the use of alum or curd and simmered on a low flame till it thickens considerably. There are other methods too of making. Kalakand is a popular Indian dessert using condensed milk and cottage cheese (Paneer). There is one another way to make kalakand using store bought Ricotta Cheese.

Kalakand (Indian style ricotta cheesecake) instructions

1. Mix the ricotta cheese and condensed milk together. Whisk properly so that there are no lumps.
2. Microwave the mixture for 5 mins.
3. Whisk it again properly so that there are no lumps.
4. Microwave for 5 mins.
5. Whisk it again properly so that there are no lumps.
6. Cross cover the bowl so that the spluttering doesn't stain the oven, yet the water from the mixture is evaporated.
7. Add the Cardamom powder.
8. Whisk it again and microwave for 2 mins. Repeat this step until u get a thick consistency (as shown in the picture).
9. When the right consistency is achieved, add the rose water and mix it well..
10. Garnish with slivered almonds..
11. Let it set in the refrigerator, preferably overnight. Keep it covered..
12. Cut it into small cubes and serve cold..

This method is quite simple and quicker version compared to conventional method. I have used microwave oven to make this dish. Instant Ricotta Cheese Kalakand - A delicious Indian milk sweet/fudge/barfi/cake prepared with Ricotta cheese in the microwave. Diwali without a ricotta cheese sweet is incomplete in our household. I love to make sweets with ricotta cheese.