In a thick bottomed pan, over medium heat set the milk to boil. Do not stir
Once it comes to a rapid boil, turn off the flame and add the lemon juice (or vinegar and water mixture) and stir gently. At this point, the chaena/paneer will separate from the whey
Place a soft cotton towel over a colander and place this then, over a large bowl. Drain the cottage cheese (chaena) over this. Do not discard the whey, you can use it to make your curries and/or knead your flatbread dough
Give the towel a good squeeze to remove any remaining whey and rinse to rid the taste of the lemon/vinegar. Using a fork, break the chaena lumps to make smaller crumbs. However, do not mash it completely, the crumbs will give a gorgeous texture to the kalakand
In the same cooking pot, add the condensed milk and the chaena. Over a low to medium flame, cook this while stirring continuously until all the liquid dries up
Keep an eye on this mixture and keep stirring to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Otherwise it will brown and discolour the sweet
Once the condensed milk in the mixture has dried up, switch the flame off and add the cardamom powder. Mix in well
Grease a small tray with ghee and transfer the kalakand mixture on it. Level it using a spatula and leave it to set in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes
Garnish with the chopped nuts and rose petals (if using) and cut using a sharp knife into squares
Serve this delicious, moist and crumbly kalakand with condensed milk slightly chilled. Enjoy!
