This easy and healthy kalakand recipe has only 3 ingredients – Paneer, dates and milk.
Paneer is protein-rich, so that’s a good ingredient (yay!!)…But traditional kalakand recipes calls for condensed milk and sometimes additional sugar. 1 can of condensed milk already has about 220 g of sugar (1 cup). That’s a lot of sugar (uh-oh!!).
We can make this recipe healthier by using dates instead of sugar. 1 cup of dates (about 20 dates) will provide 12g of additional fiber, which is better than refined, white sugar with 0g fiber.
Good amounts of fiber compared to sugar!!
Recipe
Healthy kalakand recipe made with dates (no ghee, no sugar)
- 1 cup paneer (about 1/4 kg)
- 1 cup Whole milk
- 1 cup Whole dates (Deglet Noor) (about 20 dates)
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Add ingredients to blender and blend until smooth.
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Pour paste into a thick bottom pan and stir on medium heat continuously (about 15 minutes) until it solidifies and the mass starts pulling away from the pan.
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Pour into a pan and flatten it. Put it in refrigerator and let it cool completely.
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Once it cools, take it out, cut into desired shape and serve.
Step by Step Pictures
Pour all ingredients into blender and blend.
Pour blended mixture in a saucepan and stir on medium flame.
and stir..
and stir..
Pour solid mass into a container
Cool, shape and cut.
Serve!!
Come and get it!!
Conclusion
Yes, with the constant stirring and evaporation, this dessert is a little calorie dense. But since it contains paneer (protein rich), dates (fiber rich) and milk (calcium rich), I think it is a happy medium between a decadent treat and a nutritious one.
Compared to other grain based desserts (kesari, sweet pongal), this paneer based dessert is lower in carbs. 50g of paneer has only 0.6g of carbs. You can make the carb levels even lower, by replacing dates with stevia, if that is something you are comfortable with. But, for kids, the date-paneer recipe above is a great option to provide them a protein-filled dessert with subtle sweetness.
I hope you give this recipe a try. Have you made kalakand before? Share your thoughts and comments down below. As always, I look forward to hearing from you.
Looking for more Healthy Dessert Recipes?
Try these:
Chana Dal ke Laddu (No Sugar, No ghee)
Healthy Wheat laddu (no ghee, no sugar)
Healthy Gulab Jamun (no frying)
*This post contains Amazon.com affiliate links for dates and condensed milk*
I just made this today – thank you for this awesome recipe! For me, it didn’t set up quite right as it started to burn even before the liquid could evaporate fully. I think the next time I make this, I’d have to cook it on a low flame toward the end. Oh also, this was rather sweet for my tastes, so I would make this with 2/3 cup dates. Overall a delight! I’m scooping mine into a bowl and eating it as I type 😀
Good point about the low flame.
Thank you for the feedback about the sweetness. It is a tricky sliding scale. I want the recipe to satisfy most folks. But there are people who are more sensitive to sweetness, and for them your advice is very valuable.
So happy to hear you enjoyed it!! Thank you for posting your feedback!! 🙂
I followed this recipe and really enjoyed it. I was able to eat without worrying about sugar. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Happy to hear that Prudhvi!! Thanks for your feedback.
I am fascinated by this recipe! I have got to try it, especially since you eliminated condensed milk ! Now I got to learn how to make paneer.
So glad you like it… Most Indian stores in the area carry a range of paneer products if you want to start off easy.