Chum Chum / Cottage Cheese Sweet

Chum chum is the tastiest Bengali sweet i have ever tasted. For the very first time we made chum chum at home for this Diwali. It tastes just the same as the one from bakery.
It is very common at our home, to have some sweets after dinner almost everyday. Usually it is Laddo or badusha or something similar. It is only during Diwali time that we get to buy Bengali sweets there. As we are from Kerala, which is the southern most State of India, we usually don't have any Diwali celebrations as such except the Diwali sweets which Achan (Dad) brings from the best Bengali sweets shop there. I still remember that big box of sweets which has all the yummiest Bengali sweets in it... yum yum...
Here goes the recipe for Chum chum

Ingredients:

1. Whole milk - 3 cups
2. Lime juice - 2-3 tbs
3. Sugar - 1.5 cup
4. Water - 2 cups + 1/2 cup
5. Flour - 2 tsp
6. White chocolate, melted - 2tbs
7. Saffron - 1/2 tsp
8. Pistachios/Almonds, slivered/chopped  for garnish

Method:

Paneer/Chenna

1. Boil milk in a pan and add lime juice to it 
2. When the milk completely separates and clear green liquid is seen take it for from stove.  Don't cook paneer now, otherwise it wont be soft.
3. Pass the above mixture through a muslin cloth and wash it under water to remove lemon taste if any
4. Squeeze out water by twisting the muslin cloth and hang it or keep it on paper towels for 2-3 hrs till all the water is out from the milk solids or paneer or chenna

Sugar syrup

1. Mix flour in half a cup of water and keep aside
2. Boil 2 water in a big wide pan and melt sugar in it
3. Add 1/4 tsp of saffron in the sugar mixture and let it boil
4. After 2-3 minutes add half of the flour water in the sugar syrup
5. Remove if any dirt comes as a top layer on sugar syrup. Sugar syrup shouldn't reach thread consistency
6. Sugar syrup is ready when the consistency is easily pourable and thinner than thread consistency

Chum chum

1. Knead paneer very well using hand on a flat surface. Paneer must be very soft and smooth after this. Kneading should be around 3 -4 minutes
2. Divide the dough into 6 equal part and roll it with your palm to make Oval shapes. Oval balls should be smooth without cracks
3. Sprinkle flour on a plate and place each ball in the the plate
4. Add chum chum balls to the boiling sugar syrup by titling the plate instead of taking it individually to avoid breaking any chum chum
5. Cook chum chum with closed lid for about 10 minutes and flip it to cook both sides and cook for 10 more minutes
6. To avoid sugar syrup from getting thick and sticking to the sides, add half a cup of water along the sides of the pan while cooking chum chum
7. Once chum chum is cooked for about 20 minutes, Chum chum would be doubled in its size and it will spring back if you touch it
8. Take Chum Chum out to a bowl using a big laddle. Take 3 laddles of syrup and add it to the chum chum bowl along with a cup of water
9. Keep it in the syrup for 5-6 hrs
10. After that, take out chum chum and squeeze out the syrup gently
11. Mix 1/4 tsp of saffron in a tsp of milk
12. You may garnish chum chum with saffron milk mix and nuts OR You may make a slit on the chum chum and fill it with melted chocolate and nuts and saffron

Traditionally chum chum is filled with milk khoya/ thickened milk instead of white chocolate. For easiness I have used white chocolate instead of Khoya.

I am linking this post to FridayFiesta#95 co hosted by  Loretta @ Safari of the Mind and Petra @ Food Eat Love.