Sponge Rasgulla

Boil the milk, keep stirring. Turn off the gas and add in the curd. Keep stirring as the milk curdles and add in a few ice cubes. Strain through a muslin or cheesecloth. Wash the chenna under running water. Squeeze out the excess water and hang it for 30 minutes.

In a deep pot, add 10 cups of water and 2 cups of sugar. Add 2 drops of rose essence or kewada water or cardamom powder at this stage. Turn on the gas. Add 1 tsp milk into the syrup, this will form scum that floats up which can be removed with a strainer. Take the chenna out from the cheesecloth, it should become dry but a little moist. Knead this until there are no lumps.

Make smooth round balls of 1 inch diameter. (Add 1 tsp of unroasted semolina to helps bind this mixture - Optional).

Once the syrup starts boiling, add the balls into it and cover it with a lid. Add only 6-7 balls at a time, as they double up their size, there should be enough space for them to swim in the syrup to ensure they do not lose their shape.

Keep it on a medium to high flame as the water should be continuously and vigorously boiling .Set the timer for 15 minutes. Open the lid after 5 minutes and stir the rasgullas carefully.

You will notice that the rasgullas have expanded and are almost double their size. Cover it and repeat after 10 minutes. Transfer the rasgullas in a bowl after 15 minutes with a good amount of syrup and wait for 7-8 hours before serving it.

As the rasgullas will need this time to hold their shape and the flavors get infused in them well. Serve these chilled.