Nan Khatai

I love Nan Khatai.. It has been my favourite cookie since childhood.  I used to have it in old Delhi.  If I am in Old Delhi the first thing I would do is looking for these cookies.  The heavenly aroma of these cookies can make your day and the melt-in-mouth texture oh my is simply divine.  I can have lots of these cookies in one go :D

After leaving India, like so many other things, I miss my Nan Khatais too :(  I tried to make them at home twice with different measurements but didn't get the desired results.  Though the taste was good.
Last week I tried one more time and finally nailed it.. yes yes yes I nailed it :)  Just seeing the final product, I started jumping with joy as they were so perfect.  I got those beautiful cracks on top too.  I took the first bite and it just melted in my mouth.  mmmmm.. The whole batch finished up in no time.  My toddler loved them too as they were so soft.  Needless to say my nan khatais were super duper yummilicious :)

While making the dough I used only 6 and a half tablespoons of Ghee / clarified butter as my dough got the desired texture with that even I had to add one more tablespoon flour.  As nan khatai is famous (infamous) for its ghee content, I was not so sure about the texture with so little ghee but it came out delicious just like the market ones.  Finally my efforts paid off.  Its my NO-FAIL recipe that I am proud of :)

I was so full of confidence that on the same day I tried another cookies with orange flavour.. that too came out well.  (will post the recipe soon).

I was dying to share this recipe here.  So don your aprons and start making Nan Khatai.  Simply follow the recipe (read the notes before making) and enjoy a mouthful of heaven. Happy Cooking :)

For more cookies recipes:
Vanilla Horlicks Cookies
Bakery Style Cake Rusk
Eggless Whole Wheat Cumin Walnut Cookies
Eggless Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Cookies 
Eggless Whole Wheat Oats and Ragi Cookies

Makes- 13 cookies
Baking time -  20-22 minutes
Temperature -  170 degree

My 1 cup measure 250 ml

Ingredients:

All purpose flour/Maida    -    1 cup + 1 tbsp

Ghee/Clarified butter         -    6 and a half tbsp

Castor Sugar                      -    1/2 cup

Baking soda                       -    1/4+1/8 tsp

Baking powder                  -    1 big pinch
Green Cardamom              -    3 (crushed)

Method:

• Mix together all purpose flour, baking soda and baking powder.  Set aside.
• Take castor sugar in a mixing bowl.  Melt ghee and add to castor sugar.  Mix together till it becomes a smooth paste.  Add crushed cardamom and mix again. Add in all purpose flour little by little and make a soft dough.  Chill in the refrigerator for 10-15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat oven at 170 degree.  Lightly grease a baking tray.  Set aside.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator and pinch out a small portion and roll it to a lemon size ball.  Likewise make balls with the remaining dough and arrange them in the greased baking tray.  Press the balls a little on the top.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 20-22 minutes or till the bottom gets a little brown,  You will get beautiful cracks on top.  
• Remove and let them cool for 2 minutes in the tray.  Carefully shift to a wire rack and let them completely cool down.
• Enjoy and store the remaining cookies in an airtight container.

Notes:

1. In place of Castor Sugar you can use powdered white sugar also.
2. The consistency of dough should not be too loose or too firm.  You should be able to roll the soft balls without any cracks.
3. If your dough doesn't come out together you can add 1/2 tbsp more ghee.  Do not add milk or water to make the dough.
4. Do not let the top get the browning while baking.  Check the bottom after 18 minutes, if it gets brown your cookies are ready, if not bake for another 3-4 minutes.
5. As oven settings varies, keep an eye on the cookies after 15 minutes.

Vanilla Horlicks Cookies

I am back.. Yes, I am cooking and experimenting like before but sharing it with all of you my lovely readers becoming a little less as I feel so lazy to type :D But now I have recharged myself and am going to post more frequently :)

Today’s recipe is Vanilla Horlicks Cookies.  The easiest cookies one could ever make.  You would be surprised to see that so little effort and easy peasy ingredients could do such a magic. I bought a small pack of vanilla horlicks to make my double decker choco vanilla horlicks burfi that I totally in love with.  I also tried some cakes with it (vanilla horlicks) and they too came out nice. I do not like vanilla horlicks with milk but love it in my bakes. It takes the baked goodies to another level. 

When I started making these cookies, I had no idea what I was going to add other than horlicks.  Whatever came to my mind I simply added and trust me I was clueless what was going to come out from the oven.  And when I took the first bite, it was simply divine.. so delicious and crunchy cookies were ready right in front of my eyes.  I kept them a bit healthy by adding wholewheat flour and oats flour. 
I liked these cookies so much and so did V and my baby. I think now I am going to get another pack of vanilla horlicks just to make these beauties. 

Making these cookies is just like 1-2-3.  Recipe is so easy to follow so I hope you won’t feel any kind of difficulty while making them. I baked my cookies till I find the top slightly brown. They would be so soft at first but let them completely cool down and they would become crunchy. 
Do not forget to go through the notes given at the end. Happy cooking :)

Makes-20 cookies

Temperature - 180 degree

Baking time – 18 minutes

Ingredients:

Horlicks (Vanilla Flavour)	1 cup
Oats flour	¼ cup
All purpose flour / Maida	¼ cup
Whole wheat flour / Atta	1 tbsp
Salted butter (softened)	½ cup
Caster sugar	¼ cup
Baking powder	½ tsp
Baking soda	1 big pinch
Tutty fruity (I used my homemade tutty fruity)	6 tbsp

My 1 cup measures 250 ml.

Method:

• In a wide bowl, mix together Horlicks, oats flour, all purpose flour, wheat flour, castor sugar, baking powder and baking soda. Add in softened butter and mix well with your fingers. Add in tutty fruitty and knead the mixture to a soft dough.
• Make three logs with the prepared dough and cover them with a cling film. Chill them for atleast 30 minutes.

• Meanwhile, take a baking tray and line it with aluminium foil. Grease the foil. Set aside.
• After 30 minutes, with a sharp knife cut the logs into round cookies. Arrange the cookies in prepared baking tray. Set aside.
• Preheat oven at 180 degree and bake the cookies for 18 minutes.
• Remove from oven and let them rest for 2 minutes. Shift to a wire rack and let them cool down completely.
• After cooling down cookies would become crunchy.
• Store them in an airtight container. 

Notes:

1. In place of castor sugar, you can use powdered sugar.
2. Instead of tutty fruity, you can add your choice of nuts or dried fruits.
3. If you find the dough a bit dry, you can add a tsp of milk.
4. Do not skip the chilling part, it would make the cutting easier.
5. You have to be very patient while cutting the cookies as they may get broken so do it very carefully. If it gets broken while cutting then don't worry, you can take the broken pieces in your hand and press them a little and your cookie is good to go. 
6. Do not over bake the cookies. Once they get slightly brown on the top, remove from the oven. 
7. Cool down the cookies completely before storing them.

Focassia with onion & olives

I love making different kind of breads at home.  While baking the bread, the wonderful fragrance wafts throughout my home and I simply love it..  I have tried quite a few kind of breads at home and loved the taste and texture of all of them. 

Today's recipe is Focassia bread.  Its an Italian flat bread which is, traditionally, seasoned with olive oil, salt and herbs. 

Focassia was in my TO TRY list since quite a long time.  So I finally tried my hands on it yesterday and it came out very well.  The taste was so fresh and flavourful.  The texture was also so soft and fluffy.  The whole batch finished up in a jiffy, it was that good.

Making Focassia at home is so easy.  Make the dough and stud it with your favourite toppings, bake and dig in.  I had a bottle of green olives so I used them as topping with sliced onion.  I sprinkled some mixed herbs too that enhanced the flavour nicely.  
Making breads at home gives you liberty to customize it as per your taste.  In this recipe you can top it up with black olives, cherry tomatoes, capsicum, basil, fresh veggies, coriander or even cheese.  Just let your imagination work here.  Whatever topping you use, I can bet, the taste would be superb.  

I used my pizza base recipe for the dough.  Its so simple and easy.  Traditionally, for topping up Focassia base a lot of oil is used but in this recipe I have used just two tablespoon of extra virgin oilive oil.  I was apprehensive about the results but the finished product was awesome with no compromise in taste and texture.  Now its a fail-proof recipe so I am sharing it with all of you.  Do try it.  Happy Cooking :)

Ingredients:

Dough
Maida	2 cups
Dry Active Yeast	1 tsp
Sugar	2 tsp
Salt	1 tsp
Olive oil	2 tbsp (30 ml)
Water (lukewarm)	¾ cup
Topping
Sliced green olives	¼ cup
White onion	1/4th of a small onion
Mixed dried herbs	¼ tsp
Crushed black pepper	¼ tsp
Salt	To taste

Method:

• In a bowl, take all purpose flour, salt, sugar and active dry yeast.  Mix well.  Add oil and mix again.
• Add lukewarm water little by little and knead a soft dough.  Knead it well for about 5-7 minutes.  Shift it to another bowl and cover with a cling film or wet cloth.  Keep it in a warm place for 2 hours.
• Take a baking tray and line it with a butter paper.  Set aside.
• After 2 hours, punch down the dough and flatten it on the lined baking tray evenly.  Prick with a fork on the top.  Make deep indents or dimples on the top with your finger (as shown in the pic below).  Spread one table spoon on the top evenly.  Cover the tray with a damp cloth and set aside for 20 minutes.

• After 20 minutes, again pour one tablespoon oil on the top evenly and arrange the sliced olives and onion on the top.  Press the toppings a little.  Sprinkle crushed black pepper, salt and mixed herbs (as in the pic below) and again cover the tray with a damp cloth and set aside for another 15 minutes.

• Meanwhile preheat the oven at 200 degree.
• After 15 minutes, put the tray inside the oven and bake for 25 minutes or till the top turns golden brown.  
• Remove from the oven and shift it to a wire rack to cool down.

• Slice it as per your choice and serve warm.

Notes:

1. Adjust the water quantity as required and add it little by little.
2. Do not leave the dough to raise for more than 2-3 hours.  It would nicely double up in 2-3 hours.
3. If not using active yeast, take the lukewarm water in a bowl, add sugar  and mix well.  (Do not let the water cool down).  Add yeast and let it sit for 5-7 minutes without touching.  Once it become frothy and bubbly, add it to the flour, sugar, salt and oil mixture and knead it to a soft dough.

Eggless Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

I am back with one more banana recipe.  It is eggless, butterless and made with whole wheat.  But please do not think that I am gonna share the recipe of some tasteless n blunt kindda muffins... no no no.. these are so delicious.  I made these muffins with ripe banana and as banana is a good substitute of egg for many baked goodies, I didn't add any egg in these muffins.  They came out perfectly fluffy and soft.  I always try to make something new with ripe bananas and these muffins are a part of those experiments.  Just after preparing the batter I decided to give a twist to these cutie muffins.  I put a piece of chocolate in the center of all the muffins and when V tasted it, melted chocolate came as a sweet surprise to him :D  

I was very happy with the results.  My toddler too relished these muffins.  These are perfect for breakfast and kids lunch box.  No need of icing.  I just love the flavour of banana in it.  Here, to help you, I have added some pics I took while making these muffins.

So lets start making these perfect, healthy and yummy muffins.  Do try and enjoy.  Happy Cooking :)

Ingredients:

Whole wheat flour	¾ cup
Banana	1 (Ripe)
Baking powder	½ tsp
Baking soda	1/8 tsp
Brown sugar	6 tbsp
Bar one / 5 star chocolate	1 bar (optional)
Oil	¼ cup
Milk	1 tbsp
Curd	2 tbsp
Vanilla essence	½ tsp
Mixed raisins	2 tbsp  (optional

Method:

• Sieve together wheat flour, baking soda and baking powder.  Set aside.
• Take mixed raisins and add 1/2 tsp flour to it.  Mix well and set aside.
• Line a muffin pan with paper liners and set aside.
• Preheat oven at 180 degree.
• In a mixing bowl, take sugar and oil.  Mix both till sugar melts.  Add curd and mix well.  Add milk and vanilla essence and mix again.
• Take banana in a separate bowl and mash it with the help of a fork.  Add it to the oil mix and whisk everything well.
• Add flour mix little by little to the oil banana mix.  Whisk well to make a lump-free batter.  The batter should not be too thick or too watery.  If you find that the batter is too thick add one more tbsp milk.  
• Finally add raisins to the batter and give it a stir.  
• Take the chocolate bar and cut it into six equal pieces.
• Take the prepared batter and fill the muffin cups till 1/4.  Put a piece of chocolate in the center and top it up with some more batter.  Do not fill the cups more than half.  Likewise, fill all the muffin cups with a piece of chocolate in the center. (pics below).

                                 

Bake the muffins for 20 minutes or till a knife inserted comes out clean.  Take out the tray from the oven and let the muffins rest for 3-4 minutes.

Out of oven 

Remove the muffins from the tray.  Let them cool on a wire rack.

Serve warm.

Notes:

1. Instead of brown sugar you can add white powdered sugar or castor sugar.
2. Brown sugar gave a nice brown color to these muffins.
3. You can skip the raisins and add your choice of dried fruits or even tutty fruitty.
4. Keep checking the muffins in the oven to avoid burning as temperature varies from oven to oven.  After baking the muffins for 15 minutes, keep checking.
5. Do not over bake.
6. Use of chocolate is also optional.

Strawberry Oats Bars

I love oats and experimenting with it to make different foods. Today's recipe is also made with oats and is a healthy one.  I got this recipe here and bookmarked it instantly as I found it very easy and ingredients used were also very simple and I must confess that I wanted to finish my strawberry jam too :D  

This recipe was in my TO TRY list and last weekend I finally made it and OMG it came out so yummy.  Trust me guys its seriously addictive.  You can't stop having just one. We finished up the whole batch on the same day and I myself had 70% of it :D  I loved these bars so much that I made a fresh batch again. This is the simplest recipe I ever came across.  Just mix up all the ingredients in one bowl, layer it in the baking pan and bake.  Super duper simple.

I made a few changes in the original recipe like I used thinly granulated brown sugar and castor sugar, reduced the quantity of butter, used vanilla essence in the base mixture and before baking topped the dish with chopped walnuts and I am glad I made those changes :)  Addition of walnuts and vanilla gave it a nice crunch and flavour. I also substituted strawberry preserve with strawberry jam. The final product was surprisingly divine.  (That is the beauty of experiments).

While layering the dish in the baking tray I didn't put a thick layer of strawberry jam as I wanted to have both outer crust and jam flavour equally.  You are free to use as much jam as you like.  After cutting and cooling the bars I shifted them to an airtight container and kept in the fridge.  I loved these bars even more on the following day as they became more firm and crunchy due to cooling.  I strongly recommend to store these bars in the fridge.

Its a delicious and healthy anytime snack for kids as well as adults.  Even you can have it as breakfast too with a glass of milk.  I can bet you would love to make it again and again because of its simplicity and taste.  The biggest proof of its deliciousness is that I have bought a fresh bottle of strawberry jam again ... just to make these bars :D

I am so happy with this recipe and so here sharing the recipe.  Do try and enjoy.  Happy Cooking :)

Recipe adapted from thepioneerwoman.com

Ingredients:

All purpose flour	¾ cup
Quick cooking oats/Rolled oats	¾ cup
Salted Butter (cold)	6 tbsp
Brown sugar	¼ cup
Castor sugar	¼ cup
Baking powder	½ tsp
Vanilla essence (optional)	¼ tsp
Chopped walnuts	2 tbsp
Strawberry jam	As required (I used 4 tbsp)

Method:

• Preheat the oven at 175 degree.  Grease a square pan with butter and keep aside.  
• In a mixing bowl, take all purpose flour, oats, baking powder, brown sugar, castor sugar and mix everything well.  Add butter and mix with your hand until the mixture becomes crumbly.  Add vanilla essence and mix again.
• Take half of the mixture and spread in the greased pan.  Cover the bottom of the pan with the mixture equally and press to make it firm.
• Layer the strawberry jam evenly on the prepared base of oats mix.  Cover it with remaining oats mix and lightly press the layer.  Sprinkle chopped walnuts and press them lightly.
• Bake it for 35 minutes or till it gets golden brown on the top.
• Remove from oven and let it cool down.
• Cut into squares and serve.
• Store the remaining bars in an airtight container and keep in the fridge.

Notes:

1. You can top it with any nuts of your choice.
2. Instead of walnuts you can use chopped cashews or almonds.
3. White sugar can be used in place of brown sugar and castor sugar.  If using big granulated sugar, grind it slightly.
4. Layer as much jam as you want.
5. Do not over bake.

Fruity Vanilla Cupcakes with Lemony Hung Curd Icing

My toddler is getting fussy day by day.  One day she likes homemade food and the other day just junk food.  I try to combine different things to make something healthy that could also make her taste buds happy.  These cupcakes are the result of my one more experiment for my little one.

She likes fruit flavoured muffins and corn puffs of a local brand here.  I must say her choice is excellent :) I too relish her favourite junk foods.  Those muffins and corn puffs are really delicious.  In the muffins, vanilla and fruit flavours comes out very nicely and I love it.  

Last week, before throwing the empty packet of muffin, I read the ingredients on the pack and decided to make it at home.  I had no idea how the fruit flavours came in the muffins as no essence or fruits were there in the ingredient used.  So I added orange, pineapple and vanilla essence.  I didn't add any fresh fruit.  

I was very apprehensive about the results as I had no measurements and moreover I was using some additional ingredients too.  But finally, when I tasted them, I was on cloud nine :D  They came out so well.  The sweetness, the flavour and the texture was just perfect.  I loved them and so did my baby.  

After having few cupcakes, I thought to have them with some icing.  Instead of cream, I decided to make the icing with the thick hung curd.  It was a healthy option too.  One lemon was also sitting in my fridge so I used up that too and made a lemony icing.  The final result was yummy, creamy, lemony curd icing that took my cupcakes to another level.  The combination of both (cupcakes and icing) was just mind blowing.  Now there is a guilt free icing that we can relish anytime..  isn't it awesome.?  

So my dear readers, here is the recipe of my yummy cupcakes and delicious icing.  Do try and see your kids jumping with joy... Don't forget to read the notes first.  Happy Cooking :)

Ingredients
(Makes 6 medium and 6 small size cupcakes)

All purpose flour/Maida	1 cup
Cornflour	1 tbsp
Milk powder	2 tbsp
Egg	1
Baking powder	½ tsp
Baking soda	2 big pinch
Castor sugar/powdered sugar	½ cup
Oil	¼ cup
Mixed fruit juice	1/8 cup
Soda water	1/8 cup +1 tbsp
Orange essence	1/8 tsp
Pineapple essence	¼ tsp
Vanilla essence	1/8 tsp

Lemony curd icing
Ingredients:
(For icing 4 cupcakes)

Thick hung curd**	½ cup
Lemon zest	½ tsp
Fresh lemon juice	½ tsp
Vanilla essence	1/8 tsp
Icing sugar	5 tsp

Decoration:

(For 4 cupcakes)

Thinly sliced lemon peel	8 strings
Glazed cherry	1
Colored sprinkles	1 tbsp

Method:

• In a bowl, take all purpose flour, corn flour, milk powder, baking powder and baking soda.  Mix well with a spatula.  Set aside.
• Preheat oven at 180 degree.  Line a muffin tray with paper cupcake liners.
• In a mixing bowl, take sugar and egg.  Whisk well till fluffy. Add in oil and whisk again.  Add vanilla essence, pineapple essence and orange essence and mix well.  
• In a cup, take soda water and fruit juice and give a stir.  Pour a little of it in egg sugar batter, mix it and add a little flour mix.  Mix well to avoid formation of lumps.  Add some more soda fruit juice mix and little more flour.  Mix well again.  Finally, add remaining soda juice mix and remaining flour and mix again.  The batter should be smooth and not too thick.  If you find that the batter is a bit thick add 1 tbsp milk
• Fill the moulds/paper cupcake liners with the prepared batter till half and bake for 20 minutes or till the cupcakes gets golden brown on the top.
• Remove from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack.

Icing 

• Take the hung curd in a mixing bowl, add in icing sugar and whisk well.  Add in vanilla essence, lemon juice and lemon zest and whisk again.  Don't over mix.
• Icing ready.

Icing the cupcakes:

• Take one cupcake and put 2 tbsp icing on the top of it.  Spread the icing all over it with the help of a small spoon.
• Decorate with lemon peel strands and sprinkles.  Top it up with glazed cherry.

Notes:

1. Any dried fruits or fruit mix can be added to the cupcake batter.
2. You can use your choice of fruit essence in the cupcake batter.
3. Do not leave the cake batter for long.  Bake it as soon as you make it.
4. Let the cupcakes cool down completely before icing them.
5. The curd should be very thick.  Hang it overnight to get the required thickness.
6. You can adjust the level of sugar in the icing.
7. Icing can be made of any flavour of your choice. 
8. You can decorate the cupcakes with your choice of stuff.
9. Baking time varies from oven to oven so keep checking the cupcakes after 15 minutes. If you find them getting over brown, remove from the oven.  If you find that even after 20 minutes the cupcakes are white on the top, bake them for another 5 to 10 minutes or till they get the desired browning.

** To make hung curd you can use a simple method. Take a big tea strainer and arrange it over a deep bowl.  Pour the curd in the strainer and put it (with the bowl under it) in the fridge for overnight.  Next day you would get the thick curd.