Coffee Cookies

"Didi, do you go for mendikur pendikur?"
"Mendi what?"
"Mendi kur."

That was my maid.
Of course, who waits on whom is a very debatable topic. She has been with me for a very long time and has at some point decided that she is indispensable. Worse ... that she is my guardian.

So I have to listen to her constant chatter. And constant comparision with every single lady she comes across or works for.
I have to put up with her. Why? I don't know.

Maybe am not too adventurous when it comes to judging people ... I have my scars ... so the very thought of interviewing a new one and getting used to a new person in the house gives me cold feet.

Besides, this one won't leave me.
And when I need her, she is nowhere around.



On this particualr day, I am angry. I yell at her for being late. So she is sweet talking.

"Bolo na didi ... aap ko mendikur pendikur nahi accha lagta?"

I am exasperated.
"What on earth is mendikur pendikur ?!!"

"Arey! You don't know?!! Mendikur pendikur karo toh nakhun saaf karke dete hain. Nakhun acche dikhte hain! Aur nail palish bhi laga kar dete hain!"

I look at my nakhun ... nails. They seem pretty clean to me. And 'acche' too.

"Nail polish?!"
"Ho."

And then she says .... so and so didi went to have mendikur pendikur ... keeping the kid with her. So she was late.

I had already started laughing by then. And could not stop. I knew what she was trying to tell.

Mendikur pendikur .... manicure and pedicure!!!!
So there. A new word that is already doing the rounds amongst my cousins and friends. :-)

This recipe is long overdue. I had posted a snap in this post ... but for lack of time could not post the recipe sooner.

Right after I made the Onion Cookies, I was so taken by the easy procedure that Iwanted to make some sweet cookies.

Did not give much thought and went ahead with ... horror ... my coffee cake recipe. Only this time I did not add milk and just made a dough with the egg.

And they turned out just great! I had added baking powder, so they puffed up a little and were slightly crumbly .... and the coffee gave the much loved slightly strong flavour.





For the recipe ..... just follow this. But skip the milk. I added eggs to give the necessary moisture ... but not too much. Just enough to make a dough.

For the cookies : Take medium sized balls from the dough and roll them out like a thick roti.

I used a little oil and dry flour alternately to roll out. Prick with a fork all over. Cut into small pieces with a cookie cutter or any small sized round thing ...

I used a small jam bottle cover. Preheat oven and bake at 160 degrees C.
Or check out the process here.




And so my cookie jar holds cookies now. Finally! :-)

Wish you all a very happy and enjoyable Durga Puja & Navaratri dear friends !! :-)

Tried making Onion Cookies / Crackers .... and loved them

Yippee! I baked these!

These extremely tasty and so very,very easy to make Onion Crackers come "Straight from Supriya's Red Chillies to Soma's eCurry" to Kichu Khon.

I loved this line by Soma so much ... made me think of the pass-it-on game .... that I just had to use it .... and the good lady said yes, I can! Thanks Soma! :-)

It was a very rainy day last Saturday. I was bored the afternoon through ... thought of rustling up something spicy and interesting. And then remembered these and decided to give them a try.

I went through both the recipes. For a change I curbed my experimentive side ... cannot say I was too inclined to too ... as this concerns baking, which gives me cold feet by default anyway.

Supriya has given a very good description and background for these. And yes, do heed to her warning ... these are really addictive. Soma echoes this too.
And I found it out for myself. And how! :-)

These are the easiest things that I have baked so far! I have omitted out a few things .... but they were way too tasty still.

I do not like sesame seeds .... so never have them at home.
I usually never have baking soda at home ... so again did not add it.
I did not add the cilantro / coriander leaves as I cannot eat them .... so almost never have them at home.
And I could not add the butter for the simple reason that I had run out of it ... and this decision to make these was impromptu.

Instead I threw in a few crushed Kasuri Methi into the dough. The awesome smell that fills the house when these start to bake has to be experienced to be really known.

Do go through both the recipes at Red Chillies and eCurry!

Here I am putting down the way I made them. Considering that they turned out so yummy inspite of my omitting so many ingredients, just imagine how they would be with the original recipe.

Need : Maida, chopped onions, chopped green chillies, some crushed Kasuri methi / dried fenugreek leaves, cooking oil, salt to taste and a little warm water.

How to : Mix together everything with a good amount of cooking oil. Use warm water to make a dough.

Take medium sized balls from the dough and roll them out like a thick roti. I used a little oil and dry flour alternately to roll out.

Prick with a fork all over.
Cut into small pieces with a cookie cutter or any small sized round thing ... I used a small jam bottle cover.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F ... that comes to 162.777777.... degrees C. So I stuck to my favorite oven temperature ... between 150 to 160 degrees C.

Do keep an eye on the cookie batch when baking though ... they will be done even though they still look whitish ... and a few more extra minutes will brown them too much.

Grease a baking tray . Place the cut cookies on it and bake at the same temperature for around 20 minutes.

These little munchies are way too delicious! And if eaten warm, right when you bring them out from the oven .... you won't feel like stopping .... ever. :-)

I surprised hubby with these after his afternoon snooze .... and this was the perfect snack for a rainy evening!


We had them with my very favourite  Onion and Tomato chutney. And washed them down with some hot ginger tea later. :-)

Too good! Am going to make these again ... the best part about this recipe is it is totally hassle free! :-)

Believe me folks .... if you have not tried these out yet ... in this monsoon ... you are missing out on something!