PISTA SANDESH

Pista Sandesh

Pista Sandesh is a simple and delectable Indian sweet from the Bengali cuisine. It is commonly called as Shondesh in Bengali. This delicious dish is a very popular sweet snack originated from the Bengal region (present independent West Bengal and Bangladesh, a province of India).

This sweet is still very popular in West Bengal and is not to be missed when you visit this place. This Bengali dessert is traditionally prepared with sweetened home made paneer (Indian cottage cheese)/ chhana. This recipe is an excellent variation to the creamy Sandesh or Shondesh with a touch of pista flavor. Pista Sandesh is one of the best Indian condiments and a sweet dish that will surely increases your sweet tooth to eat more.

Sweets find an important place in any Bengali Thali. There are a variety of popularly made sweets from the culinary delights of Bengal which includes the Rasgolla (Soft, spongy balls of cottage cheese soaked in chilled sugar syrup), Ras Malai, Shondesh, Chum chum, Mishti Doi and so on….., no Bengali meal is complete without Mishti or sweets and most of the Bengalis are sweet toothed. Being milk based sweet, Sandesh doesn’t last long, hence often consumed fresh.

Basically making of Sandesh is simple and made from sweetened finely ground fresh Chhana (cottage cheese). Sandesh in all its variants is among the most popular Bengali sweet. The basic shôndesh has been considerably enhanced by the many famous confectioners of Bengal, and now a few hundred different varieties exist, from the simple kachagolla to the complicated abar khabo, jolbhora or indrani. Another variant is the korapak or hard mixture, which blends rice flour with the paneer to form shell-like dough that last much longer. Note that Shondesh is also the name of a sweet pancake-like snack eaten in Bangladesh and West Bengal (where it is called malpua). What West Bengal call “shondesh” is a type of halwa in Bangladesh and some people in the region of Dhaka call it pranahara (literally, heart ‘stealer’) which is a softer kind of sandesh, made with mawa and the essence of curd.

Paneer or Indian cottage cheese is a vital part of south Asian cooking that is used in making various delicious desserts, appetizers and main course dishes. Paneer is used in making of both sweet and savory dishes. Popular savory and sweet dishes include Special Paneer Butter Masala, Paneer Tikka, Chilli Paneer, Bengali Paneer, Paneer Malpuva etc.

To prepare this delectable and unique sweet delicacy, firstly combine the sugar and paneer and mix well. Place the mixture over the heat and stir constantly to avoid lumps. When the mixture solidifies, splash the rose water on it and remove the pan from the heat. Stir for few more time. Place the cardamom and pistachios in two separate plates. Now divide the mixture into several portions of the required size and flatten them to give the desired shapes. Dip each piece into both plates in turn so that the front part of the sandesh is coated with crumbs. Serve sandesh cold and fresh.

Sandesh can be shaped in any ways. These shapes can frequently be seen resembling conch-shells, elephants, fish etc. The shapes are mostly given by moulds.  The simplest kind of Sandesh in Bengal is the kanchagolla. It is basically prepared by tossing the Chhana lightly with sugar over low heat. The sandesh is essentially hot, sweetened Chhana which has been shaped into balls.

While making Sandesh, do use fresh homemade paneer for a good texture and delicious taste. Sandesh is a classic Bengali sweet often flavored in a variety of ways. It is a combination of calcium rich low fat paneer and vitamin C made colorful and appetizing with nuts. Do try this recipe and enjoy the flavors. It’s simple and easy to make at home. For making this exceptional sweet, do click on the below link for detailed recipe:

http://www.vahrehvah.com/PISTA+SANDESH:2983