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.

Eggless Jam Doughnuts

I love doughnuts and whenever I get a chance, I make them at home.  Be it jam doughnuts or chocolate glazed doughnuts I simply love them.  Making doughnuts at home is fun.  I enjoy making dough and getting it doubled up in just 1-2 hours.  Its a kind of joy seeing the dough raising up :D

Today I am sharing my recipe of Jam Doughnuts.  Tasty, melt in mouth and super soft is all I can say about these doughnuts.  You got to try them to understand my words.. Try these doughnuts once and I can bet you would make them again and again, they taste that good.  Above all, anybody can enjoy these doughnuts as they are completely eggless :)

Now lets come to the recipe. Here I used strawberry jam for filling but you can use any jam of your choice, even marmalade would work.   As for filling the jam inside the fried doughnuts, I used an icing bag but instead of it you can use a butter paper cone or any plastic sauce squeeze bottle.  For dusting the fried doughnuts you can use icing sugar or mixture of icing sugar and desiccated coconut or icing sugar and chocolate powder/coco powder mixture. Options are endless.

Now lets start making these wonderful jam doughnuts.  Happy Cooking :)

Ingredients:

All purpose flour	1 cup
Active dry yeast	½ tsp
Unsalted butter	2 tbsp
Salt	1/8 tsp
Milk (lukewarm)	¼ cup
Sugar	3 tbsp
Jam/Marmalade (for filling)	As required
Icing sugar (for dusting the doughnuts)	As required
Oil	For frying

Method:

• In a bowl, take all purpose flour.  Add dry active yeast and sugar and salt.  Mix well.  Add butter and rub it well with the flour.  Add lukewarm milk to the flour little by little to make a soft dough.  Knead it well for about 5 minutes.  Shift the dough to another bowl and cover it with cling film.  Keep it at a warm place for 2-3 hours for raising. It would get double in size in 2-3 hours.
• Once raised, knead the dough once again and make small balls with it.  Arrange the prepared ball in a greased tray and again leave it for 1 hour for raising. Do not forget to cover the tray with a damp cloth.  The balls would double up in the size after one hour.  
• Meanwhile, Keep the icing sugar ready in a large plate.  Fill the jam in the icing bag and set aside.
• Once the dough balls puffed up, heat oil in a skillet and on medium heat, fry them until golden brown.  Keep stirring to get even coloring.  Do not increase the heat else the doughnuts would remain uncooked from inside. 
• In the same manner, fry all the doughnuts.  Take out on a tissue paper and roll them in icing sugar.  
• Now take the icing bag filled with jam.  Make a small hole in all the doughnuts.  Insert the nozzle in the hole and fill the jam.  Do not over stuff,  Fill the remaining doughnuts likewise.
• Serve warm and enjoy.

Notes:

1. Icing sugar can be substituted with powdered sugar.
2. If using salted butter, skip the salt.
3. Do not over ferment the dough or it would get sour.  Keep it not more than 2-3 hours for raising. 
4. If you want to store the dough, shift it to an airtight container and store in the deep freezer.  Thaw well before use.
5. Fry the doughnuts on medium heat.
6. Coat the hot doughnuts in the icing sugar.

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.

Bakery style cake rusk

Cake rusks have always been my favourite since childhood.  When I was little, my papa used to bring these rusks for us.  Having them was a real treat at that time :)

After finishing the school, I was like forgotten these rusks and after my marriage I accidentally found them in a bakery and couldn't resist my temptation.. the mere fragrance of these rusks made me nostalgic.  Having them after such a long time was simply wonderful.  It was heaven when I took the first bite..  (I know it sounds insane :D )

Here in Zambia, I searched but couldn't find these rusks anywhere.  Then one fine day I came across this recipe :)  I made these rusks on the very next day.. and OMG they were just like the bakery ones.. Now I can make my favourite cake rusks in my very own kitchen.. yippyyyyy. 

Unlike me, I didn't make any change in the original recipe except addition of yellow food color and a little more vanilla essence.  Its a must try recipe.  Try it atleast once and share your feedback here. Happy Cooking :)

Recipe source: divyascookbook.com

Ingredients:

All purpose flour/Maida	1 ½ cup
Baking powder	¾ tsp
Eggs	2
Butter	½ cup
Powdered sugar	¾ cup
Milk	1/3 cup
Vanilla essence	1 ½ tsp
Tutti fruity	¼ cup
Yellow food color	¼ tsp

Method:

• Take all purpose flour and baking powder.  Mix well.  Set aside.
• Add 1/2 tsp all purpose flour to tutty fruitty and mix.  Set aside.
• Preheat the oven at 180 degree.  Grease an 8 inch square pan and line with butter paper.  Set aside. 
• In a mixing bowl, take butter and sugar.  Beat till fluffy.  Add in eggs and beat well.  Add vanilla essence and food color.  Beat again. 
• Add half of the milk in the egg batter, then add half of the flour to it.  Mix thoroughly to avoid formation of lumps.  Add the remaining milk and stir again, add remaining flour and mix well again.  
• Fold in tutty fruitty and give a quick stir.
• Pour the batter in the greased square pan and bake for 40 minutes or until it becomes golden brown on the top.
• Remove from oven and let cool.
• Remove the butter paper and cut the cake into two and then cut it vertically in slices of desired thickness.  Arrange in a greased baking tray and bake for 15 minutes or till they become light brown and crunchy.
• Once cool, store them in an airtight container.

Notes:

1. Keep an eye on the cake while baking, once it is brown and firm on top, remove it from the oven.
2. Do not avoid using butter paper.
3. My sliced rusks got baked in just 15 minutes.  As baking time differs from oven to oven, you need to check carefully to avoid burning.  
4. You can bake according to your desired browning.
5. You can adjust the quantity of tutty fruitty as per your wish.
6. Use of food color is optional.

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.