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Home » Sweet Treats

Kalakand

Published: Oct 24, 2019 · Modified: Dec 14, 2020 by Vandana Chauhan. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Kalakand is a very tasty eggless dessert from India. This popular Indian dessert (mithai) is made with milk, paneer, sugar, dry fruits and cardamom powder. A perfect recipe for Indian festivals like Diwali and Navratri.

This post contains affiliate links. Please read my full disclosure here. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

A few weeks ago, I shared a couple of recipes for the Indian festival Navratri and now as another major Indian festival – Diwali is approaching, I am back with an Indian dessert recipe – Kalakand.

For all of us, there are a few dishes which are associated with a festival or event as we grow up eating them during that time. Kalakand and Gulabjamun are associated with Diwali for me. There were a lot of other sweets which we used to eat during Diwali but, these two were my favorite. Though Gulabjamun was made at home by my mother, Kalakand was always brought from the market.

Diwali is my favorite festival, a time of the year when it becomes unbearable for me to live away from my parents and sister as there are so many beautiful memories with them attached to it.

Though this time I won’t be able to visit my parents during Diwali, I will remember them by making the dessert from my childhood - Kalakand.

What is Kalakand

Kalakand is an Indian dessert made with milk and Indian cottage cheese called paneer. A lot of people also add solidified milk (mawa) to it but that’s optional. This delicious sweet, and creamy dish is one of my favorite Indian desserts.

The easy way of making Kalakand

In Dubai, fresh paneer is not available easily and I didn’t want to use frozen paneer to make Kalakand. Also, since I wanted to make Kalakand in the traditional way from scratch, I made paneer at home.

Though a very easy recipe, it needs patience to cook milk over a low flame which could be time-consuming but the result is worth trying.

However, if you are looking for a quick recipe, you can buy fresh paneer and use it in this recipe. It will make the process very quick.

More easy Indian dessert recipes

  1. Orange kheer
  2. Seviyan kheer
  3. Sabudana kheer
  4. Lauki ka halwa

If you try any of my recipes then please don’t miss to share your feedback and rate the recipe in the comments section below.

You can also follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Step by step photo instructions






Recipe

Kalakand served on a colorful ceramic plate

Kalakand

Kalakand is a very tasty eggless dessert from India. This popular Indian dessert (mithai) is made with milk, paneer, sugar and cardamom powder. A perfect recipe for Indian festivals like Diwali and Navratri.
5 from 7 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Indian
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 35 minutes
Servings: 18 small pieces
Calories: 103kcal
Author: Vandana Chauhan

Ingredients

  • 2 ltr full cream milk
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder (Elaichi powder)
  • 1 teaspoon ghee (clarified butter)
  • Chopped pistachios for garnishing You can use any other dry fruit of your choice

Instructions

  • Boil 1 ltr milk in a pot. After the first boil, add lemon juice to it. Mix and continue to heat the milk. If the milk gets curdled within 1-2 minutes, switch off the gas otherwise add more lemon juice and repeat the process until the milk gets curdled.
  • Strain the curdled milk, discard the water and keep the paneer (cottage cheese aside).
  • Take a large heavy-bottomed pot/ wok and add the remaining 1 ltr of milk to it. Cook the milk, till it thickens (around 30 minutes). Keep on stirring in between so that it doesn't stick to the bottom.
  • Now, add paneer and cardamom powder to the thickened milk, mix and continue cooking for another 40 minutes or till everything thickens.
  • Add sugar, mix and cook. Sugar will make the mixture runny. Continue cooking for another 10 minutes till it thickens again.
  • Grease a baking pan or thali with ghee and pour the mixture on it. Spread evenly. Garnish with dry fruits.
  • Allow the Kalakand to set for a few hours and then cut into the desired shapes. Enjoy!

Nutrition

Calories: 103kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 12mg | Sodium: 48mg | Potassium: 147mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 180IU | Calcium: 126mg | Iron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Tag me on instagram #greenbowl2soul

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Koray Canut

    January 03, 2020 at 1:38 am

    Hi,
    After my first India visit, milk cake was my favorite dessert and now at home I want to try it. Thanks for your recipe!
    My question is if I can use less sugar in this recipe without risking the texture or consistency of the mixture?
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Vandana Chauhan

      January 04, 2020 at 10:15 am

      Thanks a lot, Koray. Milk cake is one of my favorite desserts too. Though Kalakand can also be called milk cake, if you mean the dessert which is sold by the name of milk cake in India and is brown in color then it's a different dessert. Kalakand is white in color and softer than the Indian milk cake. The process of making both the desserts is almost similar but milk cake is cooked for a longer period, put in a container with a tight lid and then covered with a thick cloth for a few hours. This is done to seal the heat inside which gives a very nice brown color and texture to the milk cake.

      You can reduce the quantity of sugar in this recipe, it won't impact the texture.

      Reply
  2. Lathiya

    November 05, 2019 at 9:45 pm

    5 stars
    Kalakkand is one of my favorite desserts. This looks delicious and your stepwise instructions are so helpful.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      November 06, 2019 at 9:14 am

      Thanks a lot Lathiya 🙂

      Reply
  3. Jagruti's Cooking Odyssey

    November 02, 2019 at 12:11 pm

    Such a tasty recipe and your step by step pictures make it so easy to make. Lovely share for Diwali.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      November 02, 2019 at 3:32 pm

      Thanks Jagruti.

      Reply
  4. Mayuri Patel

    October 31, 2019 at 8:33 pm

    5 stars
    Kalakand with home made paneer definitely tastes so much better than one made with ready made paneer. Super treat for Diwali, I would have definitely had a piece or two.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 31, 2019 at 9:53 pm

      Thanks Mayuri 🙂

      Reply
  5. Jayashree T.Rao

    October 30, 2019 at 4:54 pm

    Nice recipe, kalakand looks super delicious. It is one of the favourite sweets at home.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 30, 2019 at 7:38 pm

      Thanks Jayashree 🙂

      Reply
  6. amrita

    October 30, 2019 at 10:11 am

    Kalakand looks so delectable...store bought paneer does not make a good kalakand and hence I like the way you have made it from scratch...

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 30, 2019 at 11:02 am

      Thanks a lot Amrita 🙂

      Reply
  7. Uma Srinivas

    October 28, 2019 at 10:22 pm

    5 stars
    Kalakand looks so good. I wish we can eat with vegan version one. I bet your family is enjoying this yummy sweet for Diwali.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 29, 2019 at 10:17 am

      Thanks a lot Uma. Even I try to eat vegan most of the time but because of paneer in Kalakand it becomes really difficult to create a vegan version. I will share if I could find a solution :).

      Reply
  8. Sandhya Ramakrishnan

    October 28, 2019 at 2:59 am

    5 stars
    I have always made kalakand the shorter way and not too happy with the texture. I just love how grainy your kalakand is and that is exactly how I like it.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 28, 2019 at 10:17 am

      Thank you so much Sandhya 🙂

      Reply
  9. Pavani

    October 26, 2019 at 10:02 pm

    5 stars
    Perfectly made kalakand - though it's time consuming, I am sure the final result is well worth the effort. Kudos to you for making it at home. Wish you and your family a very Happy Diwali.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 27, 2019 at 9:05 am

      Thanks a lot, Pavani. Wishing a very Happy Diwali to you and your family too.

      Reply
  10. Lata Lala

    October 25, 2019 at 9:13 pm

    5 stars
    Kalakand is so easy and delicious recipe which is must for every occasion. Your Kalakand looks delicious.
    Thanks for sharing

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 26, 2019 at 7:56 am

      Thanks Lata:)

      Reply
  11. Usha

    October 25, 2019 at 4:28 am

    5 stars
    When it comes to sweets, Diwali reminds me of vermicelli / semiya kheer. It was a must preparation on chaturdhasi. Kalakand has turned out good.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 26, 2019 at 7:58 am

      Thanks, Usha. It's interesting how we all have different dishes associated with a festival. I also love semiya kheer:)

      Reply
  12. Jolly

    October 24, 2019 at 1:19 pm

    Looks very festive and super delicious, love this kalakand very much.

    Reply
    • Greenbowl2soul

      October 24, 2019 at 2:02 pm

      Thanks a lot, Jolly :).

      Reply

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Hi! Thanks for stopping by my blog. My name is Vandana Chauhan and I am on a mission to explore vegan/ vegetarian recipes from around the world. I am delighted to welcome you to join me on this exciting journey.

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