M is for MISHTI

mishti
Originally uploaded by dalbhat.

You don't have to hit the street for very long before you come across a MISHTI dokan selling melt-in-your mouth, milky sweetmeats that are the favorite of Bengalis.

These are often made from sweetened channa, milk that is boiled up in big vats and curdled into a cottage cheese then shaped into balls, pancakes and other seasonal forms.

During the winter, many of the sweets are sweetened with gur, the date palm syrup that is tapped at this time.

If you buy two pieces, there is a little box that fits just those two. If you buy four, there's another box just the right size. And if you are purchasing the infamously sweet and syrupy roshogallas for your whole family and community, then take it home in an earthy terracotta pot.