Gag bag

Ingredients:

The Rasgullas:

• Cow's milk - 3 liters
• White Vinegar - about 3-4 tablespoons
• Edible coloring - if needed

Preparation time: 50-60 minutes

Serves: Depends on how much you eat

Method:

1. Start boiling the milk. Keep stirring seeing to it that it doesn't spill over.
2. You will see foam form over the milk. Keep blowing it to the sides to avoid spilling the milk over. Heat on a low flame lest you can't control the overflow.
3. Once the milk is totally boiling and you have blown the foam/ cream to the sides, take a table spoon of vinegar and pour it in the milk.
4. You will see that the milk starts to curdle immediately and starts to turn transparent. Keep stirring, however stir lightly lest you break apart the curdling process.
5. Continue adding tablespoon after tablespoon (shouldn't take more than 3 most likely) till you see that the milk has totally separated into cottage cheese on one side and transparent water on the other.
6. Take care that you don't add too much vinegar, else the cheese will become chewy and won't taste good.
7. Also take care while stirring not to break the cheese apart.
8. Take a sieve and pour off the water immediately. This will avoid the cheese from becoming sour.
9. A lump of cheese will have formed. Wash it with cold running water and this will ensure that the vinegar goes off. Don't keep the force of the water too high, just enough to cool the lump of cheese and not to break it apart.
10. Drain extra water off for like 10-15 mins.
11. Now take a blended and start putting small quantities of cheese into it. You will see that once it is blended, it turns into a nice smooth paste like mixture.
12. Do this for the whole quantity of the milk.
13. Now you will have a nice ball of cheese which can be rolled up into small balls of desired size and shape. Take care not to make them too big, since they grow upon placing in the sugar syrup. Optionally you may add coloring of your choice if you so prefer.
14. Boil the water, add sugar to it and add essence, and keep boiling till the sugar dissolves. Once it is boiling, start placing the balls of cheese thus created.
15. Let the solution continue to boil, and then cover the vessel up and let it boil on low heat for 3-4 minutes. This will ensure that the cheese is well cooked and well soaked with sugar syrup.
16. Serve hot or cold, but it tastes best cold.

Pan cakes vs the "Ghaavan/Dhirda"
I made these pancakes the other day for the first time. And my, were they good...!!! I was totally mesmerized by the taste, and also the very little effort it requires to make them. I had seen them in sitcoms like Friends, and wondered how they would taste. And I really loved them. All that a typical family can have against it is that it contains egg. Other than that, its the normal batter stuff we require. Just that calling it a "Pan cake" gives it a hip status.
A dhirda, ghaavan also are equally good. And if had with the right side dishes like chatni etc, they are insurmountable. But suppose you offer a kid an option of dhirda and a pan cake. He is bound to go for the latter one. Its a reality, and we all know it. Why so????
This I have no clue of, but be it whatever, one thing I am sure of is that I ll never have to go empty stomach at any time of the day, if I have an egg, and some self raising flour. I have learnt the secret of filling my stomach the western way...!! Which like all occidental stuff is impressive yet elementary...!!