Sandesh

November 3rd, 2008 filed under Desserts

Sandesh is a specialty from the state of Bengal. Sandesh is a delicacy, served as a dessert. Made several different ways using freshly made paneer.

Recipe makes 24 pieces.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 gallon (8cups) milk
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

For Garnish:

• 2 tablespoon sliced pistachios
• About 8 strands of saffron
• 2 tablespoon crushed pineapple

Method:

1. Make the paneer (check the recipe for paneer).
2. Drain the whey using a strainer line with cheesecloth, or muslin cloth.
3. Wrap the curds in a muslin cloth, rinse under cold water, and squeeze well.
4. Once the paneer is drained, place on a dry, clean surface and knead the paneer until the paneer is almost rolls into smooth soft dough.
5. Add the sugar and cardamom into the paneer and knead the paneer again until sugar is mixed well.
6. Next on low heat cook the paneer mixture stirring continuously until paneer starts coming together as soft dough. This should take about 6 to 7 minutes.
7. Turn off the heat and keep mixing the paneer like you are making dough.
8. This is most important step to this dish; you are just cooking paneer enough to take out the rawness. If you over cook the paneer it will become crumbly.
9. Mix the saffron thread in 1 teaspoon of warm milk and mix it well. Keep aside.
10. Divide the paneer in 24 equal parts and roll them giving a ball shape.
11. Garnish with crushed pineapple, or garnish them with a drop of saffron paste putting sliced pistachio over.
12. Refrigerate them for few hours before serving. Serve them chilled!
13. Sandesh can be refrigerated for a week.

33 Responses to “Sandesh”

1. Aishwarya says:

   March 5, 2009 at 7:34 pm

   Hi
   Manjula Aunty.
   i really like ur recipes.. specially the Boondhi ladoo …..Aunty , please can u share ur recipe of Tomato soup…..

   thanks soo much..

   Reply
2. jaya says:

   March 5, 2009 at 7:10 pm

   i appreciate ur kindness to share the recipes

   Reply
3. nimisha says:

   March 5, 2009 at 4:36 am

   You r such nice person & your recipe are so simple. I am little confused about bengali sweet just like rasgulla,sandesh, rasmali…
   which kind of milk i can use for these sweet ? whole milk, semi skimmed milh or skimmed milk….i am staying in london

   Reply
4. Eileen Freeman says:

   February 18, 2009 at 4:40 pm

   I made this and it was really lovely, I like the flavour of cardamom. My friends were impressed that I had made something very different to what I usually cook. It was also my first attempt at making paneer – easy to do.
   Thank you so much for your clear instructions – this is how my mum showed me to cook – straightforward.

   Love your site. Many thanks for all the other recipes too.

   Reply
5. ananthi says:

   November 21, 2008 at 10:19 am

   hello auntyji,
   i´m so happy i made sandhesh for the first time and it came out nice .i gave this to my bengali friend and she told me it is perfect thanks a lot…….

   Reply
6. Mitali says:

   November 17, 2008 at 5:36 am

   Dear Auntie, can you give us the recipe for Moong daal halwa ?

   Reply
7. kanchana gopinath says:

   November 14, 2008 at 8:33 am

   hai manjulaji why no new recipes very long time. I am eagerly waiting for ur recipe

   Reply
8. nafisa says:

   November 5, 2008 at 11:42 am

   hi aunty..I tried ur recipe it came good…I did not have pineapple at home.. so I just put ground badam n pista on it.. n on some of it I drizzled some honey.. it tasted really good.. thank u so much for sharing ur recipes with us..

   Reply
9. Gayatri Sharma says:

   November 3, 2008 at 5:24 pm

   Auntyji

   This recipe is so good and so easy. I will definitely try this. Thanks for giving such easy and tasty recipes.

   Reply
10. Uma says:

    November 3, 2008 at 4:21 pm

    I was about to make Sandesh this week but couldnt find a good link online. This recipe is a boon Thank you so much.

    Reply