Sunday’s feature: From Ranu’s kitchen, famous Bangladeshi dessert, Ras gulla blogging 101

Today I’m posting our famous dessert recipe and a photograph taken by me. I’m not a seasoned photographer, therefore there will be flaws for which I apologize. I have not practiced enough to make it perfect, sorry.

Recipe for Rasgulla(cheese balls in syrup):

Ingredients:

1. Whole milk- 2 litres
2. fresh lemon- 3 squeeze to get the juice , set it aside
3. plain white flour- 2 tablespoons
4. soft butter-2 tablespoon
5. Method:
6. pour the milk in a round pot with a lid(the lid will be useful later)do not cover, slowly bring the milk to a boil, when it comes to full boil, pour the juice of the three lemons, wait for a few minutes until the milk curdles and cheese is formed. Use cheesecloth to drain the water. When the water is drained completely, squeeze the cloth to make sure all of the water is drained and the cheese is lukewarm. Take the cheese  out of the cheese cloth and put it into a bowl large enough to be able to knead. Add butter and the tablespoons of flour. Mix it in the cheese and knead it. when the cheese is smooth and doesn’t crack, when you try to make into little balls, it is ready. It makes about eighteen balls.
7. Syrup ingredients:
8. Water- 6 measuring cups
9. sugar- three measuring cups
10. Use the same pot to make syrup, wash the pot thoroughly , pour the water and sugar and place it on the stove top, turn on the heat to medium, when the sugar dissolves turn up the heat to full boil, when the syrup is slightly sticky,put about nine cheese balls to avoid them from rubbing each other, otherwise the balls would break. Cover the boiling cheese balls in syrup at  high heat for five minutes. Turn the heat slightly, continue boiling for ten minutes this time, after fifteen minutes, turn down the heat to medium and leave the cheese balls for twenty minutes more in the syrup. The last  ten minutes turn the heat to simmer. While cooking you must make sure the syrup is not too thick, if it is have some plain boiled water and add it gently. Do not put too much.
11. After forty five minutes take the cheese balls out gently. At this stage they are very soft, it’s a good idea to wait about five minutes, and then take them out one at a time and place them in a serving bowl, save the  the syrup for the next batch.
12. Repeat the same method for the remaining cheese balls, when all eighteen are cooked put them in the same serving bowl and pour the remaining syrup over the cheese balls.
13. Enjoy!
14. …………………………….. 🙂

Tagore song:Singer Hemant Kumar, posted and translated by Ranu

আমি কান পেতে রই ও আমার আপন হৃদয়গহন-দ্বারে বারে বারে
কোন্ গোপনবাসীর কান্নাহাসির গোপন কথা শুনিবারে- বারে বারে ।।
ভ্রমর সেথা হয় বিবাগি নিভৃত নীল পদ্ম লাগি রে,
কোন্ রাতের পাখি গায় একাকী সঙ্গীবিহীন অন্ধকারে বারে বারে ।।
কে সে মোর কেই বা জানে, কিছু তার দেখি আভা ।।
কিছু পাই অনুমানে,কিছু তার বুঝি না বা ।
মাঝে মাঝে তার বারতা আমার ভাষায় পায় কি কথা রে,
ও সে আমায় জানি পাঠায় বাণী গানের তানে লুকিয়ে তারে বারে বারে ।

Deep down in my heart

I hear the secret sobbing and laughter

Of someone in their unknown dwelling

repeatedly

Where the bumblebee quietly

Hides in the lotus flower

Where some night bird sings

Alone in the dark

I know not how I am related to her

I see some of her glow

Partly by guessing

Occasionally I attempt

to understand her message

Which comes to me

Secretly in the form of a musical note!

 

 

………………………………. 🙂

 

 

Daily Prompt: That Stings

Franz Kafka said, we ought to read only books that bite and sting us.” What’s the last thing you read that bit and stung you?

The book I’m reading now is, ‘The Miracle of Mindfulness’, on my trip to Montreal , I rented an apartment from a local French landlord. I noticed his shelf was full of French books, but there were only a few English ones. I picked up one and was fascinated by the title.

I opened the book, the title of the first chapter was, The Essential Discipline, I wanted to find out what he meant by it. I started reading, it was interesting and I continued reading, I noticed on the third page there was a  line ,Washing the dishes to wash the dishes. What does he mean by this I questioned myself, I read on to find the answer. I know I wash dishes morning,noon and night and in-between,I never came across this phrase, ‘Washing the dishes to wash the dishes.’

My curiosity was at its height, I must find out the meaning I thought. On the last paragraph the author explained what he meant by that phrase,he says, “while washing the dishes one should only be washing the dishes one should be completely aware of the fact that one is washing the dishes.At first glance ,that might seem a little silly: Why put so much stress on a simple thing? But that’s precisely the point. The fact that I am standing there and washing these bowls is a wondrous reality. I’m being completely myself,following my breath,conscious of my presence, and conscious of my thoughts and actions.There’s no way I can be tossed around mindlessly like a bottle slapped here and there on the waves.”

I was impressed I decided immediately I must have the book. I went out to Indigo book store, inquired about the book, the lady at the store told me she had two copies, I rushed upstairs, there was only one, I grabbed the book paid for it and came home. I have it now, it’s one  I think should not be read at once. There are a lot of things in it and very valuable.

I’d say this one bit and stung me. It’s worth every penny I spent to get it! 🙂

……………………………. 🙂