This Two-in-One Sondesh recipe is a spin on traditional Bengali Sondesh, bringing to mind the familiar flavors of classic strawberry vanilla two-in-one ice cream!
Jump to:
- True blue Chotobelar Durgapujo!
- Two in one Ice cream memory!
- Two in One Sondesh - a fusion sweet?
- Tips
- Here is how I make Two in One Sondesh at Debjanir Rannaghar:
- Recipe Card
- Related Recipes
- Have you tried the Two-in-One Sondesh recipe from debjanir rannaghar!
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Right now, I'm in a pretty relaxed phase of life, at least when it comes to things around the house - though I'm still on top of things at work. This means I'm doing almost no cooking, so I recently hired a "Rannar Didi" (read cook) who thankfully is a fantastic cook! Embracing this laid-back attitude, I didn't make anything fancy, or even ordinary, during Durga Pujo. I even skipped making Thakurer Sondesh, the special offering I usually prepare for Durgastami.
True blue Chotobelar Durgapujo!
As a true Bengali, I'll always spell "Sondesh" with an 'o'. Anyway, the goddess clearly wasn't thrilled with my laziness, because she decided to spice up our Nabami evening with some rain! And just as that was happening, my little goddess (my daughter Pasta) started begging for ice cream, upset because I wouldn't let her go to the pandal.
I shook off my laziness and decided to create something special for my little girl.
Two in one Ice cream memory!
Growing up in the 80s, Two in One ice cream was my absolute favorite. We enjoyed it at weddings and whenever something exciting happened, like getting good grades or winning a drawing contest. This simple ice cream was a constant throughout my childhood, especially in Kolkata, where ice cream choices were limited. We usually had plain vanilla or the delightful Two in One, a beautiful mix of pink and white with a touch of strawberry, and sometimes chocolate.
Two in One Sondesh - a fusion sweet?
Since Pasta was craving ice cream, I decided to recreate that flavor in a Sondesh. I made a Two in One Sondesh, which is simply a two-flavored Sondesh with vanilla and strawberry. But I also had another reason to make her something sweet. My little darling looked so elegant in a red Benarashi Saree all evening during MahaAstami, and she even danced to a Mithun Chakraborty song!
Butterscotch, as far as I recall, came much later. Now, about the Two-in-One Sondesh I made on Nabami: it wasn't the steamed kind we call "Ice Cream Sondesh." This was a simple Sondesh, made with Chana (cottage cheese) I prepared at home, and flavored with vanilla and strawberry. Mehebub brought back two containers of chunky strawberry jam from Riyadh.
Actually, it was more of a strawberry compote than jam, so I used it instead of making my own for the Sondesh. If you're making this, either use store-bought strawberry compote or make your own using the recipe I shared with the Panna cotta.
Tips
Making the Two-in-One Sondesh wasn't planned. I simply used what I had on hand. I used about 2 liters of full-cream milk to make the Chana, and I flavored it with the extract from a vanilla bean instead of vanilla essence. Last but not least, I used sugar and condensed milk to make the Two in One Sondesh. To give it the perfect shape, I used my usual terracotta Sondesh mold. My daughter, who loves sweets, thought it was delicious and enjoyed the ice cream-like flavor.
Here is how I make Two in One Sondesh at Debjanir Rannaghar:
Recipe Card
Two in One Sondesh; not the ice cream!
Ingredients
To make Chana or Cottage Cheese:
- 2 Liter Full Cream Milk
- 2 Lemon
To Make Two in One Sondesh:
- 600 g Chana/ Cottage Cheese: prepared from two liters Milk
- 5 tablespoon Powdered Sugar
- 3 drops Vanilla Essence/ Extract
- 4 tablespoon Strawberry Jam/ Strawberry Compote
- 6 tablespoon Condensed Milk
- 1 teaspoon Ghee to grease the mold
Instructions
To make Chana or Cottage Cheese:
- Boil milk in a deep-bottom pan and reduce to ⅓.
- When the milk is reduced in quantity, simmer the flame and add lemon juice to the milk to curdle it.
- Once the milk starts curdling, switch the flame off.
- Cover the pan with a lid and leave that for 10 minutes.
- Strain the water from Chana/ cottage cheese using a strainer.
- Put the Chana in the middle of a muslin cloth and tie the edges of the cloth to close it.
- Place something heavy (I have used my "Shil Nora / Shil batta") for this over the Chana-filled cloth.
- Leave it for 30 minutes to drain away excess water from it.
- After thirty minutes, remove the cloth and there should be a block of cheese as the end product.
To make the Sondesh:
- Take the Chana/ Cheese block and mash it is using your hands to make it lump-free.
- Start kneading the Chana to make it soft.
- Mix Condensed milk with the softened Chana.
- Now separate the Chana into two parts.
- Take one part of Chana in a pan and start cooking it on a low flame by adding 3 Tbsp. of powdered sugar and vanilla essence.
- Cook until the Chana solidifies a bit and leaves the edge of the pan. It took me around 7 minutes on low flame.
- Take the vanilla-flavored Chana out on a plate.
- Start cooking the remaining Chana along with 3 Tbsp. of Sugar and Strawberry Jam/ Compote on a low flame.
- The Jam I have used had strawberry chunks and I used that as it is to give a body to the Sondesh.
- This portion took me around 10 minutes of cooking as it involved the Jam as well.
- Take the strawberry-flavored Chana out onto a plate.
- Now grease the choice of the Sondesh mold using a little ghee.
- Take a half portion each of the flavored mixtures and shape them as shown in the picture.
- Remove from the mold carefully.
- Two-in-one Sondesh is ready to serve.
Notes
- Two in One Sondesh can be stored for 2-3 days in the refrigerator.
- The amount of Sugar can be increased or decreased based on preference.
- What amount of flavored Chana to be used for making a Sondesh is based upon preference.
- If mold is not available, Sondesh can be prepared just by shaping it like a ball.
Nutrition
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Have you tried the Two-in-One Sondesh recipe from debjanir rannaghar!
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