Nankhatai Recipe / A Spiced Eggless Indian Cookie

 Nankhatai Recipe / A Spiced Eggless Indian Cookie

      Give this delicious and lip smacking Nankhatai a try for your tea time evening snack. They are a delicious Indian spiced eggless cookie flavored with cardamom and pistachios with a touch of salt to add to the taste.

      Nankhatai is a delicious Indian spiced eggless cookie that is made with a combination of flours, spiced with cardamom powder and bound along with ghee and yogurt. The softness of the cookie comes from the added yogurt and the ghee. You can optionally substitute the ghee with 3/4 cup of chilled butter, finely chopped.

      Nankhatai - It is believed to have originated in a bakery in Surat when the Dutch had occupied it, serving the populace of Dutch living there. When the Dutch were leaving in the 1600s, the bakery was handed over to an Persian man who continued baking bread, but the demand for it reduced.

      So he sold hard and old bread, which turned out popular because it lasted longer. This crispy bread was known as Irani Biscuit. In its wake, the famous Nankhatai biscuit came with its rich and crunchy textures which was more suitable to the Gujarati population as it was eggless.  Serve Nankhatai along with hot Masala Chai for your tea time break. 

Nankhatai Recipe

Cuisine: Indian 

Course: Snack 

Diet: Vegetarian 

Ingredients:
Dry Ingredients:

• 1 cup All Purpose Flour (Maida)
• 2 tablespoons Sooji (Semolina/ Rava)
• 4 tablespoons Gram flour (besan)
• 1/2 teaspoon Baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 3/4 cup Caster Sugar
• 1/2 cup Ghee
• 1 teaspoon Cardamom Powder (Elaichi)
• 3 tablespoons Curd (Dahi / Yogurt),or more if required
• 1 cup Ghee

Preparation:

1. To begin making the Nankhatai Recipe, preheat the oven to 180 C. And prepare a baking sheet greased with butter or ghee.
2. In a stand mixer or a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients together. Add in the wet ingredients and beat until all the ingredients come together in the form of a dough. 
3. Place the dough in a cling wrap and refrigerate for about 3 hours until chill. This process is optional, but I like to do this as it makes the cookies more crunchy.
4. Divide and shape the dough into lemon size balls, you can get about 25 to 30 balls of cookies. Give a slight thumb impression in the center.  Dip the balls in the crushed nuts.
5. Arrange the Nankhatai in a baking sheet and place them in a preheated oven and bake until lightly golden brown for about 15 to 20 minutes.
6. Serve the delicious spiced Nankhatai along with a hot cup of chai or pack it as a snack for the kids lunch box. Store them in an airtight container.
7. Serve Nankhatai along with hot Masala Chai for your tea time break.

                                                                                                                                               EnjoyFood!