Shortbread Cookies Recipe

Buttery, crispy, crumbly at the same time soft and melt-in-mouth Shortbread Cookies!!!

If you are looking for healthy cookies without butter, then do check out our Millet Cookies - Eggless and Butterless!! But, if you are in a mood for all the buttery flavour and goodness then you are in the right page :)
These Shortbread cookies are not only perfect for munching but fun to do as well. The very first time I tried these cookies I made them with my daughter Neha. She was thoroughly excited when it was time to cut the cookies ( me too :) ) That day we had lots of fun doing and eating these cookies.

These cookies are not overly sweet and the little salt makes them taste even better  ( so, don't skip the salt please! )

They are very easy to make and make an excellent snack for kids' birthday parties! They are perfect travel food too. 

 

Shortbread Cookies

Buttery, Crispy , Crumbly at the same time soft melt-in-mouth Cookies!!
Prep time: 10 min + for chilling| Cook time: 17 min| Total time: 27 min|
Yield: 14 Cookies

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour: 1 cup + for dusting 
Salt: 1/8 tsp 
Softened Butter: 1/2 cup 
Powdered sugar: 1/4 cup 
Vanilla Essence: 1/2 tsp

Recipe Reference: Joy Of Baking

METHOD:
1) Take Flour in a bowl. Add salt to it. Mix well and keep aside.
2) Take softened butter in a bowl and using an electric beater whisk until smooth, about 1 minute. Add powdered sugar and whisk again for 1 minute until smooth.
3) Add the vanilla essence and mix once more.
4) Finally add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Then with a spatula scrape the sides. The dough will be sticky.
5) Wrap it up in a cling film and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours. The dough will be quite firm now. Let it rest in the counter for 5 minutes. Dust the work surface and rolling pin with flour. Gently beat the dough with rolling pin and then start rolling ( This prevents the dough from cracking )
6) Flour the surface as necessary and make sure to turn the dough frequently to prevent it from sticking to the surface. Roll it a little less than 1/4 inch thickness. Now comes the fun part ( my favorite part!!! ) With your favorite cookie cutter cut out the cookies.
7) Transfer them to a cookie tray lined with parchment paper. You can re roll the scraps and cut out them as cookies ( chill the dough if it becomes difficult to handle ) Preheat the oven at 180 C for 10 minutes. While the oven is preheating place the cookies in the refrigerator. Bake the cookies for 15 to 17 minutes or until it starts to turn brown lightly on the sides. Let it cool in the tray for 5 minutes. Then transfer to the cooling rack to cool completely

That's it your favorite cookies is ready to munch :)

NOTES:
1) Softened butter means your butter should be soft to beat but not way too soft. If you leave your butter in room temperature ( here in Tamil Nadu, I don't know about other places ) too long it can become way too soft and greasy. It should still be colder than our room temperature. this way it won't need too much flour and the cookies will turn out perfect :)
2) Don't overwork the dough as it will yield tougher cookies.
3) We don't need to beat the butter until fluffy as we don't want the cookies to rise in oven. Here I have used an electric beater. If you don't have that, you can just use a whisk.
4) Here I used round cookie cutter, you can use any shape you like.
5) The cooking time may vary depending on the thickness you roll and the size of your cookie. Thinner cookies will bake faster. So, adjust accordingly.
6) Chilling the cookies before baking ensures that they do not spread in the oven.

Cheers,
Sindhiya.S

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Rice Kheer - Rich, creamy, aromatic kheer made with milk and rice.

I mostly do this Rice Kheer when SS is at home for lunch. You could see his face brighten up every time I do this kheer. He is a big fan of Milk desserts and this is one of his favorites. Whenever I do this kheer, he will just limit his lunch to enjoy his 1 cup ( sometimes 2 cups :) ) of kheer!!

Nothing can match the smell of freshly ground cardamom in this kheer ...It just fills your home with wonderful aroma, that anybody who enters your home will come straight to the kitchen :) I have used basmati rice as basmati rice combined with cardamom adds a very subtle flavour.

Rice Kheer is perfect for festivals and get together as they can be made ahead and stored in the refrigerator.
Though this rice kheer takes a bit of time to make, it is a very simple recipe and does not demand your undivided attention the whole time. I always put this in a separate stove in simmer and do my rest of other cooking while stirring this occasionally.

 

Rice Kheer

Creamy, rich and delicious rice Kheer topped with nuts!!
Prep time: 5 min| Cook time: 1 hour 5 min
Total time: 1 hour 10 min| Yield: 4 or 5 servings
Ingredients:
Milk: 1 litre 
Basmati Rice: 2 and 1/2 tbsp
White Sugar: 1/2 cup + 1 tsp
Cardamom: 2
Badam: 15
Pistachios: 15

METHOD:
1) Wash the rice with water twice. Drain the water and keep aside. Heat milk in a sauce pan.
2)  When the milk is about to boil add the rice and give it a stir to ensure that no rice sticks at the bottom. Now simmer for about 1 hour or till it is reduced to about half its volume and the rice is cooked well ( Make sure to scrape the sides and stir occasionally )
3) The rice should be well cooked and split in the middle  as shown in the picture below. Now add  sugar and let it dissolve. In the meantime take cardamom with a tsp of sugar in mortar and pestle and make it to a fine powder.
4) Finally add the cardamom powder to the kheer. Give it a mix and switch off.

That's it Creamy and rich rice kheer is ready to serve. I like to serve them hot. You can serve as per your liking

Just before serving, sprinkle some sliced nuts over the top!!!

NOTES:
1) Stir the kheer occasionally and make sure to scrape the sides too.
2) Leftover kheer can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.
3) This rice kheer can be served hot or cold.
4) Slice the nuts as thinly as possible.
5) Sprinkle the nuts just before serving as this adds a nice contrast to the creamy kheer.

Cheers,
Sindhiya.S

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Soft and Juicy Chicken 65

Soft, juicy and spicy Chicken 65 - The ultimate starter recipe

Have you all come across this thought - Why does chicken 65 in restaurant alone is so soft, juicy and full of flavours?! Well I have had this thought atleast a dozen times. Earlier mostly we buy readymade chicken 65 masala powder. Though it was flavouful and good, it wasn't as soft and juicy as we get in restaurants.

One day my friend Indhu gave me a wonderful tip of marinating the chicken in lemon juice first which eventually led to these ultimate Chicken 65. 

There are two main things that I consider important to get a perfect soft and juicy Chicken 65

• First marinate the chicken in lemon juice and salt up to 4 hours ( minimum 1 hour )
• Fry the chicken in medium high flame until it is just cooked. Cooking for too long can also make the chicken run out of all the moisture.

And one more thing, this is the recipe I use in my Chicken 65 Biryani - one of the popular posts in our space!!!

 

Chicken 65

Soft, juicy and spicy Chicken 65!!!
Prep time: 4 hour 30 min| Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 4 hour 45 min| Yield: serves 3 to 4


INGREDIENTS:
Bite-sized / cubed Chicken pieces: 3/4 Kg 
Big Lemon: 1 
Salt: to taste
Red Chilli Powder: 2 and 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder: 1 and 1/2 tsp
Cumin Powder: 3/4 tsp
Pepper Powder: 3/4 tsp
Turmeric Powder: 1/2 tsp
Ginger Garlic Paste: 1 tbsp
All Purpose Flour: 2 tbsp 
Corn Flour: 4 tbsp
Oil: for frying

METHOD:

1) Clean the chicken pieces by washing with water at least twice. Drain all the water and make sure they are dry. Add lemon juice and little salt.
2)  Mix well and keep aside for 4 hours. After 4 hours, add ginger garlic paste, red chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, pepper powder, turmeric powder, all purpose flour, cornflour and the remaining salt.
3) Mix well and keep aside for another 1/2 hour. Heat oil in a kadai and drop the chicken pieces one by one ( Do it in batches without crowding too much as it will reduce the oil temperature )
4) Fry the Chicken pieces in medium high flame. After one side of the chicken pieces are cooked flip over and cook on the other side too. Cook till they are evenly browned. Drain the chicken pieces in a tissue paper.
 I always do a taste test with a small piece to check if they are done and note the timings for the next batch ( This way I need not test  for each and every batch which will eventually lead me to eating the whole lot :) )

That's it soft, juicy and flavourful chicken 65 is ready for grab!!! Serve hot with onions and lemon wedges...

NOTES:

1) Marinate the chicken pieces in lemon juice and salt for a minimum of 1 hour as it will yield the best soft and juicy chicken.

2) Cooking time is very essential in getting perfect chicken 65. It may vary depending on the size of chicken pieces and the heat of your stove. But don't worry, you will definitely get it right. Just do some taste test and see which you like the best.

3) The colour of the chicken mainly depends on the colour of your red chilli powder.

Check out my top favorite Chicken 65 Biryani recipe here !!!

Cheers,
Sindhiya.S

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