On Krishnatashtami, we celebrate the Bhagavan Krishna’s birthday. The scriptures portray bala (baby) Krishna as a happy and mischievous child with boundless energy and great fondness for all things milk. Milk, yogurt, buttermilk, cream, ghee, venna, and milk based sweets are lovingly offered to bala Krishna during this festival time. In our family, for pooja neivedyam we prepare venna (the cream layer from yogurt) and pala kova or kalakand.
Kalakand, an exquisite, milk based sweet preparation is an interesting process. Concentrated milk called khoya and fresh paneer called chhana are mixed and simmered together with sugar to a luxurious thick, firmness. The mixture is cooled, then cut to squares and garnished with pistachios. That is kalakand. As you can imagine the kalakand has a rich taste.
Depending on the khoya-chhana ratio and sugar variety, kalakand is 2 types.
Milky-white kalakand: Three parts chhana and one part khoya together simmered slowly with white sugar for hours. Continuous stirring and low heat cooking result in a pure-white kalakand. It’s a labor intensive process and usually you will find this milky-white kalakand at Indian sweet shops.
Coral-pink kalakand. Chhana and Khoya are in 1:1 or 1:3 ratio and unprocessed, old-world style red sugar (turbinado) sweetens and colors the kalakand. This is the type we prepare at our home. Both varieties taste equally delicious, but I prefer the Coral-pink colored kalakand. Here is how I made it for Krishnashtami prasadam.
Recipe:
(takes about 2-3 hours. Makes about 18 to 20 2×2x1 square shaped Kalakand)
½ gallon whole milk and juice from one lime - to prepare chhana
½ gallon whole milk - to prepare Khoya (concentrated milk)
2 to 2½ cups - unprocessed cane sugar (turbinado)
1 cup, shelled and unsalted pistachios - coarsely crushed for garnish
Silver or gold foil to decorate the kalakand2 big, sturdy, wide based pots -
Chhana for Kalakand
1: Place the pots on stove-top and add half gallon milk to each pot to prepare chhana and khoya simultaneously.
Chhana: In one pot, once the milk starts to boil, reduce the heat. Add the limejuice and stir. Within minutes, you will see small clouds like white curds floating on top. Wait till they get bigger (if they don’t, add some more lime juice and stir) and the whey below gets less milky. This process takes few minutes, so wait at least five minutes. Switch 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 sink. Gather the curds and discard the whey. The fresh paneer called chhana is ready.
Simmering Milk ………….. Thickened milk (khoya) after 2 Simmering Hours
Khoya: In another pot, once the milk starts to boil and lower to heat and simmer, until the milk gets thick and is reduced to about one fourths of the original quantity. (While thickening, stir now and then, and care should be taken that milk does not stick to the bottom of the pot.)
2: At this stage, to the khoya, add the freshly prepared chhana and sugar. On low heat, simmer continuously mixing, until the khoya-chhana mixture thickens to a waterless-firm lump. This process takes about 45 minutes to one hour.
3: Pour the firm mixture onto a plate. Level it evenly and allow it to cool completely. Then cut to squares or diamonds and garnish with gold/silver foil and pistachios.
Kalakand Cooling
Kalakand Cut to Squares
Kalakand Garnished with Pistachios ~ for Indian Sweets 101
