| 1. | To make paneer: Bring milk to boil in a pan. Add lemon juice, stirring constantly. When milk curdles, remove pan from heat. Place muslin over a bowl. Pour curdled milk into muslin and strain. Gather up corners of muslin and tie about 5 cm above curds. Hang this bag for about 15 minutes. Gently squeeze bag, take down and place between two cutting boards. Place on top board about 2 kg heavy object for about ½ hour. Remove weight. Untie bag. Weigh 150 gm paneer to make gulab jamuns. |
| 2. | To make syrup: Put water, sugar, cardamoms and lemon slices in a pan. Bring to boil on high heat stirring till sugar is dissolved. Reduce heat to medium-high and boil for about 15 minutes. Strain syrup through a muslin cloth. |
| 3. | Sift together flour and baking powder. Knead khoya for 10 minutes. Knead paneer for 5 minutes. Mix khoya, paneer and flour. Knead for 5 minutes. |
| 4. | Divide dough into 36 portions. Put 1 green cardamom seed and 2 grains sugar in the centre of 1 portion. Roll between palms to make a smooth, crack-free ball. Make remaining balls in the same way. |
| 5. | Heat oil in deep-fry pan on high heat for about 2 minutes (90ºC). Reduce heat to low. Add 8 balls one after the other. Fry till dark golden brown (turn balls occasionally by gently shaking the pan instead of using a ladle). Remove and drain. Put gulab jamuns in warm syrup. Fry remaining balls in the same way except do not increase or reduce heat. Keep aside gulab jamuns in syrup for at least 1 hour. Reheat. Serve hot. |
| 6. | *High quality whole milk should yield the 150 gm paneer required for this recipe. |