Something sugary has sneaked up on our sweet food and is now making it much sweeter: chocolate! Chocolate makes some desserts even better, including chocolate sandesh, pedas, and barfis; we're here to make you love these treats just as much as we do. Get these melting chocolate tips under your belts before you dive into some cult favourites of chocolate meets indian delicacies that even cranky grandpas love buying. Because of its unique melting and boiling points, chocolate is super fragile and can easily burn if not handled properly, making it unsuitable for consumption.
Tips
- Chop the chocolate into pieces that are ½ cm or smaller so that they melt evenly. Larger pieces could not melt evenly.
- To use the double boiler method, set up a pan of water to simmer and set a bowl on top of it, ensuring that the water does not reach the bowl's base.
- In a double boiler, melt 1 to 2 tablespoons of ghee or oil for every 100 grams of chocolate. This facilitates the melting of chocolate.
- Whip constantly with a spatula until ¾ melted. Take it off the stove and mix it until it's completely smooth.
- Melt 50 grams of chocolate in the microwave in 20-second intervals, stirring every time, on 50% power.
- Make sure the chocolate doesn't burn. It will finish melting off the heat if you remove it from the fire just before it looks entirely melted.
Chocolate Sandesh
In the traditional manner of a Bengali mishti shop, this delectable Bengali dessert combines chocolate with the sandesh's characteristic ingredients—chhana, or curdled milk solids, sugar, and, of course, pistachio nuts. Additionally, you can whip up a batch of homemade chocolate sandesh right in the comfort of your own home! Smoothing out pieces of dark chocolate requires kneading them into chhena. No sugar craving will go unsatisfied because every bite is soft and chocolatey. A decadent combination of pistachio and chocolate flavours elevates sandesh to artisanal status.
Chocolate Barfi
Making chocolate barfi couldn't be easier, and the milk-based fudge, which is known for its distinctive nutty flavour, takes on an even richer dimension when topped with chocolate. After heating in a nonstick skillet, the ingredients—cocoa powder, butter, sweetened condensed milk, and cashews—are put into a container lined with baking sheets to set. When the barfi has firmed up, slice it into squares and, if desired, dust it with cocoa powder. Indulge in a chocolatey delight with every bite of this buttery, rich barfi.
Chocolate Peda
The milk pedas get their delicious chocolate flavour from cocoa powder. The traditional pedas take a long time to cook, but they can also be made quickly. You can make up one of the quick varieties in less half an hour, and it tastes just as rich and delicious as the real thing. Plus, it melts in your mouth. To whip them up, simply combine melted butter, milk powder, dark cocoa powder, and condensed milk in a saucepan. Keep stirring for 10 to 12 minutes over low heat, or until the mixture starts to pull away from the pan's edges. Roll out on a plate that has been smeared with ghee and form into balls with hands covered with ghee. Get the classic peda shape by gently flattening them.
Chocolate Laddoo
A delicious variation on the classic laddoo, these chocolate laddoos are a welcome addition to any puja or prasad platter. You can make this chocolate laddoo at home with ease because the recipe is not complicated. Alternate ingredients for chocolate laddoos include cardamom, grated coconut, and condensed milk, in addition to the usual besan (gram flour), almonds, and dried fruit found in ordinary aloo. Little laddoos shaped like balls are made from them, which serve as a base. These delectable sweets are elevated with a decadent chocolate covering and a hint of cardamom powder.
Chocolate Rosogolla
Just like you, we want your chocolate rosogollas to be easy and fast. Instead of putting in the typical amount of time that halwais do, try something easier. Begin with a soft paneer-like dough that is made by boiling milk with lemon juice to curdle it. After the dough is mixed with cocoa powder, it is rolled into uniform balls. At the same time, cardamom pods, sugar, and water are simmered to make chashni, also known as sugar syrup. The rasgulla balls are cooked for 10 minutes after being gradually added to the simmering chashni. As they soak up the sugary nectar, the rasgullas soften and get a chocolatey flavour from the cocoa. After they have cooled, the chocolate rasgullas are taken out of the chashni, creating a one-of-a-kind mishti that amps up the sweetness of this traditional Bengali dish.