Cashew & Almond Cookies

Guess what, Gomathi and I are classmates once again, after 6 long years. Both of us are doing an online course in Technical Writing and have a common paper this month. I wish we were in the same place; we could have had group study sessions (you all know how well they work right!). Anyway, I just finished writing up my assignment for the week and decided to do some blog hopping and came across a recipe for cashew cookies. I have made a few changes to the recipe, so let’s hope they turn out good :-)

Ingredients (Makes 18 small cookies)
Coarsely ground cashews and almonds – 1/2 cup
Aatta (wheat flour) – 1 cup
Cardamom Powder – 1 tsp
Olive oil – 1/3 cup
Light brown sugar – 1/2 cup
Baking Powder –1/4 tsp
Milk – 2-3 tbsps

Method
Roast the nuts and grind them coarsely. Add all the ingredients except milk to a bowl and mix well. If the dough feels tough, add milk, a tbsp at a time and knead to make soft dough. Refrigerate it for 20 minutes. Towards the end of the 20 minutes, preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F.

Line a cookie sheet/baking tray with parchment paper or foil (takes the hassle out of cleaning burnt on stuff). Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out into small balls. Flatten slightly, place on a lined sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes. I guess, the substitutions I made caused it to take longer. Keep an eye on them though; the cookies might get done faster in your oven. Don’t worry if the cookies feel soft when just out of the oven, they will harden a bit as they cool. Enjoy with a cup of joe…or tea! Bon Appétit.

Link to original recipe - http://neetzkitchen.blogspot.com/2011/11/eggless-soft-and-chewy-cashew-cookies.html

Note  1) Roasting the nuts in the microwave - Place the nuts in a microwaveable plate (make sure they are spread out evenly) and microwave for 2 minutes. Toss and microwave for another minute or so. This is much faster than roasting them on the stove-top or in the oven.

          2) I have learned from my mistake. The cookies needed to be flatter and thinner. Mine were slightly thicker and took a longer time to cook.

           3) If you have powdered nutmeg, well and good. But I love the aroma of freshly grated nutmeg, so that’s what I use.  A handheld grater works really well for this.