Bijaya Dashami(Last Day of Durga Pujo), when the youngers take blesses from the elders, men greet each other by hugging. After the blessings, greetings, hosts welcome their guests with sweets & snacks like 'Rosogolla, Naru, Nimki & <strong>Chandrapuli</strong>'. In this recent time, we don't have musch time to prepare the items & sweets ourselves, they are store bought, and nowadays the sweets shops are very much aware of the fact thet people became very busy to prepare such time consuming items, so they are also selling nimki, <strong>chandrapuli</strong>, naru etc at their shops. But traditionally our Grand mothers used to prepare those items at home for 'Bijoya Dashami'. They used to make Tokti, <strong>Chandrapuli</strong> by making paste of coconut, chhana, khova in morter & pastle and by using moulds they give nice shapes. Me and my nieces used to sit beside Didu(Grandma) while she used to prepare all the items, our wish was to taste before those were served to the guests. We knew very well, after the serving to the guests there would be nothing left for us. And <strong>Chandrapuli</strong> was one of my most favorite sweet among all. <strong>Chandrapuli</strong> or any Sweets are not very easy to make. But now days we have to live outside Bengal, and Bengali without sweets, none can even think of that. So we manage some time to prepare the authentic sweets at home to welcome our guests on the special day.
Chandrapuli is an authentic Bengali sweet. This sweet is made with 'Chaana/Cottage Cheese, Khova/Mawa/Milk Solid, Scraped Coconut & sugar Or Jaggery'. This sweet is must for Durga Pujo(Bengalis' Biggest Festival). Chandrapuli is little sweeter than the other Bengali Sweets. As coconut, mawa is added with chhana, that makes this sweet, sweeter. But so what, we Bongs love sweets, right!And the shape is half moon so the name is like this, 'Chandrapuli', Chandra eeans moon and puli menas Pithe. Because 'Chandrapuli' is not like the typical sondesh . It's kind of Pithe. Where coconut and khova is being used. Traditionally in Sondesh only Chana and sugar/jaggery will be the key ingedients. In sondesh, there will be no khova/mawa. So let's see how to make Chandrapuli.