Thandai Spiced Nankhatai
Crumbly ghee loaded indian shortbread perfect for festivals, as a snack or any occasion.
Equipment
- Mixing bowls, cookie sheet, measuring spoons and cups
Ingredients
For The Nankhatai
- 150 g all purpose flour
- 50 g besan
- 40 g finely ground almond powder
- 140 g powdered sugar
- 150-160 g ghee, not melted softene, adjust quantity as needed
- Thandai spice powder (recipe below)
Thandai Masala
- 1 tsp (8-10) black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 4 green cardamom pods, seeds only
- Few dried rose petals
- 3-4 saffron strands
Instructions
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment.
- Add all the thandai spices to a mortar and pestle and grind to a fine powder.
- To a large bowl, add softened ghee and sugar. Using a spatula, cream the ghee and sugar together. It takes about 4-5 minutes till the ghee and sugar looks pale and fluffy like buttercream.
- Place a sieve and add all purpose flour, almond flour and besan. Sieve. You can push using a spoon to make sure that there are no lumps.Add the Thandai Masala.
- At first, mix with spatula. Slowly the flour will start absorbing the ghee and the mixture will look very crumbly. Mix very well, we want to moisten each and every speck of flours with ghee- makes for a flaky nankhatai. Hang on and keep combining. Don't be tempted to add more ghee right now.
- Once the mixture looks like moist sand granules, use your hands to bring it together into a soft dough. Adjust softened ghee now if needed. Add very little to begin with, maybe ½ tablsepoon. Work with gentle hands. Don't knead or squeeze. The dough should not feel loose or sticky. If needed due to warm weather, refrigerate the dough to make handling easier.
- You can shape the nankhatai right away if you dont want to add colors.
- To make colorful nankhatai, divide the dough into four equal parts in seperate bowls. Add colors of choice to different portions. Mix very well.
- Work with one colored dough at a time else the cookies may get spotty. You can wear gloves if you wish while rolling them. Pinch small portions (these spread a bit) of the dough and place on a baking sheet lined with paper.
- Press a raw almond on top or any nut of choice. If you dont want to use nuts, make a small indentation with your thumb in the center. This helps in flatter shape and cracks when nankhatai bake.
- Refrigerate for 10 minutes(dont skip). Meanwhile preheat the oven to 325F.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes till the bottoms are light golden in color.
- Once the nankhatai are baked, pull the baking sheet out and leave it untouched for 15 minutes. The nankhatai are very soft right after baking and they will break if you touch or transfer them right away.
- Once a little cooled, transfer with a help of spatula to a wire rack. Enjoy!
Notes
- Feel The Dough :- Work the dough with hands, feel it. It should feel soft (but not sticky).The dough should come together in a ball and it should be soft yet firm. If it sticking to your hands, that means that you added more ghee and this will make the cookies spread too much when they bake. Add little flour to firm up the dough.
- Troubleshooting:-
- If while making the dough feels dry, add a little (1-2 teaspoons) ghee. If you feel that the dough is very soft and your hands feel oily, add 1-2 tablespoons of flour. This nankhatai recipe is very forgiving and it is perfect for beginners.
- You will need to refrigerate the dough a few times if you are making this recipe during summertime. The dough should not look shiny at any time.
- Nut powder- If you have allergies or are making it for someone else, you can skip almond flour and substitute it with equal quantity of flour. You can use any kind of ground nuts in this recipe as long as the quantity remains same. Ground cashews or pistachios work great.
- Scaling - Easily halve or double this recipe.
- Food Coloring :- Since we are dyeing the dough, good quality colors will make sure that there is no bitter aftertaste, which can sometimes happen with food coloring.
- Chilling - Chilling the cookies after shaping is recommended for a thick nankhatai with cracks. If you won't chill, the cookies will be flatter since they will spread.
- Cooling :- Once the nankhatai are baked, pull the baking sheet out and leave it untouched for 15 minutes. The nankhatai are very soft right after baking and they will break if you touch or transfer them right away.
Nutrition
Calories: 82kcalCarbohydrates: 9gProtein: 1gFat: 5gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 11mgSodium: 1mgPotassium: 22mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 1IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 6mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!