Nankhatai is a very popular Indian shortbread cookies with cardamom flavor prepared by mixing gram flour, all purpose flour and semolina. These melt-in-the-mouth biscuits are sweet and crunchy. These homemade nankhatais make an excellent Diwali gift for friends and family. It is also perfect with evening tea or coffee. I adapted the recipe from nishamadhulika. Today we will learn how to make Nankhatai following this easy recipe with step wise pictures.
Nankhatai
Prep Time : 15 mins
Cook Time : 15 mins
Yields:36 Small Nankhatais
Recipe Category: Biscuits-Snacks
Recipe Cuisine: Indian
Author:Padhu Sankar
Yields:36 Small Nankhatais
Recipe Category: Biscuits-Snacks
Recipe Cuisine: Indian
Author:Padhu Sankar
Ingredients needed
All purpose flour/maida – 200 grams (1 cup) sieved
Fine Rava/semolina – 50 grams (1/4 cup)
Gram flour (kadalai mavu) – 50 grams (1/4 cup) sieved
Cardamom powder – 5-6 pods powdered
Baking powder – 1 tsp
White sugar – 170 grams (3/4 cup)
Ghee/ clarified butter – 200 grams (1 cup)
For Decoration
Pistachio – 10 – 12
Preparation
Before baking, it is always necessary to pre-heat the oven. Pre-heat the oven at 180 degree C for 10 minutes.
Grease a baking tray with ghee or line it with parchment paper.
Powder the sugar finely and keep it aside.
Sliver pistachio and keep it aside.
If you cannot get fine semolina, grind the regular semolina/ rava just for a second in the blender.
Method
In a bowl, mix together ghee and powdered sugar. Ghee should be semi solid. (I used readymade 200 ml packet ghee).
Beat ghee and sugar together until it becomes light and smooth. (I mixed it vigorously with the ladle for 5-6 minutes).
In another bowl, mix together maida, gram flour, semolina, cardamom powder and baking powder.
Mix well.
Add the flour to the ghee + sugar mixture and mix until combined to form a smooth dough. Don’t over knead the dough.
Make small gooseberry sized smooth balls without cracks from the mixture. Press the ball slightly to flatten it.
Arrange it on the greased baking tray leaving enough space between the cookies as nankhatai tend to expand while baking.
Gently place a slivered pistashio in the center of each cookie.
Keep the baking tray with the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for 10 minutes. This is done to retain the shape of the cookies.
Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200 degree C for 12 -15 minutes or until the bottom starts browning.
Remove the tray from the oven and transfer the cookies on a wire rack to cool completely.
Once taken out from the oven, the cookies will be very soft but will harden as it cools.
Storage and shelf life – Once it cools, store it in an air tight container. It will last for 10-12 days at room temperature and for more days if refrigerated keeping it in an air tight container.
Tips – If you are going to bake in batches, cover the dough with a cling wrap and refrigerate.
Don’t have an oven, still you can bake these cookies- Find out how?
If you do not have an oven but want to bake these delicious cookies, no worries, you can bake these or any cookies in a pressure cooker or any heavy bottomed vessel following the method given in the link below. Click the link to know more.
How to bake cookies without oven.
More Easy Homemade Diwali Gift Ideas for friends and family.
Burfis, laddus, pedas make a nice gift for friends and family.
Figs Dates Burfi, maaladu, coconut burfi, rava ladoo, kaju katli, dry fruit laddus, gulab jamuns, chocolate pedas etc.
For more Diwali Sweets and Snacks, check the link below
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Hi
Shall I try same cookies wit pressure cooker.
Yes, you can. I have written it down below how to "bake in pressure cooker" and also given the link. Check it.
Hi Padhu, what should be the time for this in a microwave oven?
I am not sure as I have not tested in microwave oven.
Hi Padhu, can we use powdered jaggery after grinding it finer in a mixer and use it as a replacement for sugar?
You will get ready made powdered jaggery in organic stores. use that if place of sugar to make it more healthy. I doubt regular jaggery will work.
Hi Padhu, I got an idea of making cookies with the homemade sathumavu. I am going to try cookies for the first time. Can you please advise if it works if I just replace the all purpose flour in your above recipe with sathumav powder.
Follow my ragi cookies recipe. You can make even sathumavu laddu.
http://www.padhuskitchen.com/2015/02/sathu-maavu-laddu-health-mix-ladoo.html