A Parsi Shortbread Recipe

Niloufer Mavalvala shares a family recipe for khataiai, semolina almond biscuits that were a favourite in her family at tea time.

Khatai, also referred to as nankhatai, is a shortbread that has both Persian and Indian roots. Traditionally prepared with a mix of ghee and butter, it can be made with either. Variations of it stem from using flour, semolina, rice flour, and wheat flour. Persian cuisine makes these with rice flour or chickpea flour and calls it Nan-e-Berenji—translating to bread and rice! They flavour their delights with rosewater and rose petals and tend to use poppy seeds to dot them. Their biscuit is smoother in texture and melts to the touch of the tongue.

The Parsi khatai is considered to have originated in Surat, Gujarat. Flavoured with cardamom and nutmeg powders, familiarly crisscrossed, and decorated with four slivers of almond or sometimes a cashew. Placed in pairs of two khatais placed back-to-back, they are traditionally wrapped in butter paper that is twisted at the ends that resemble a large sweet. As the Zoroastrians moved inland to Navsari and Pune, so did their fine foods. It leaves behind a healthy competition of which of the three cities produces the best teatime snacks.

In my home, baking khatai was often a family affair. During school holidays, we cousins would gather around the table with our aunts and make these in large quantities together. Often, we made dozens at a time, detailing each one with a line and carefully placing four almond slivers in the center, making it look like a flower. Baking them in batches, waiting for them to cool, our next task was to set up a wrapping station, placing two khatais back-to-back in butter paper to make them appear like a very large sweet. They tasted the best eaten off the baking tray, straight from the oven.

Read more about the delightful world of Parsi tea tieme snacks, here.

RECIPE FOR KHATAI

(Makes 24)

Ingredients

227 gm salted butter or ghee
1 cup sugar
2.5 cups sifted flour
3 tbsp semolina
A pinch of salt
2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp nutmeg
Slivered almonds to garnish

Method

Cream together the butter-ghee and sugar.
Stir in the flour, semolina, salt, cardamom and nutmeg.
Make 24 small discs, gently flatten them, cut a light X mark on each one.
Put 4 slivers of almonds on each quarter, pressing it in firmly to stay.
Bake in pre heated oven 180 C/ 350 F for 15 -17 minutes.
Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Tips

If the mixture is dry, add a spoonful of water, milk, or yogurt to bind together.
Butter and ghee proportions can be varied - half and half will give you a crisp enough biscuit. The more butter the softer it will be. The flatter you press it the crispier it is and will cook earlier. Freeze before baking if you prefer.  Sifting flour twice will make the cookie less dense. Adding 2 tsp baking powder to the flour will also make it lighter but will taste more like a cookie/biscuit and less

Niloufer Mavalvala is an experienced home cook and a six-time award-winning author of 4 cookbooks, who believes her passion has a purpose. 

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