The holy Shab-e-Barat, known as the night of fortune, will be observed tonight across the country with due religious fervour and devotion.

Shab-e-barat is approaching and your neighbourhood grocery stores are already stocked up with ghee and spices. The fish and bhortas of the last week are well behind, and rich sweet and savoury recipes are being dusted out.

Fast forward to today, and you will see that love for traditional Bengali sweets is still going strong. Unfortunately, the only thing that seems to have changed is that we now have literally no time to dabble into the wizardry of sweet-making as the city life has its own set rules, which mostly do not include making desserts at home.

Finely grind cardamom and sugar. Add milk to it and cook the mixture on a low flame until it thickens.