Rasgulla Eggs in a Bird’s Nest

Boil the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat, stirring continuously.

Once it comes to a boil, lower heat, add the lime juice and let it sit covered for 10-15 minutes till the greenish whey separates.

Drain into a muslin/cheesecloth held over a colander. Save the whey water for other uses.

Squeeze out the whey as much as you can, and let it hang for 30 minutes.

Unwrap the paneer and knead it for 10-15 minutes until the fat begins to separate.

Divide the dough using a 1/2tsp measure into about 23 - 1/2" balls. Cover the dough while working.

Take one ball, and knead in the pinch of food colouring. Divide this into 22 tiny balls.

Place the colored ball into the white ball and seal it closed by rolling it inside your palm.

Repeat with the remaining balls. Cover and set aside.

In a medium sized pan, combine the sugar and water and let it come to a rolling boil.

Add the balls into the sugar syrup, cover and cook for 2 minutes over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and continue to cook for 13 minutes.

Uncooked rasgullas float in water. When cooked, they sink. If the rasgulla balls are still a little uncooked, boil them again for an additional 5 minutes.

Let it cool in the refrigerator for 5-6 hours, or overnight to set the porous, spongy rasgulla texture.

Melt ghee/butter in a pan. Roast the vermicelli over low-medium heat turning over, once lightly browned and fragrant. Take care not to break the strands.

Once both sides are slightly toasted, add in a few spoons of the sugar syrup from the rasgullas. You may flavour it with cardamom powder at this stage. Sprinkle a few spoons of water.

Cover and let it cook until soft, sprinkling a little water as needed for it to cook, then remove from heat.

Take a small bunch of vermicelli strands and fashion it into a nest using a muffin tin or any other mould of your preference.

Bake at 180°C/350°F for 10 minutes.

Transfer immediately to a wire rack and it will crisp as it cools. If you do not transfer while still warm, then it will be harder to remove from the pan. Heat for a few minutes to loosen it up, then remove.

Place one or two rasgullas inside the nest. Garnish with chopped nuts, spoon over any reduced syrup leftover and serve.