Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

  • Serves: 12
  • Prepare: 25 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes
Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

Diets

  • Vegetarian

Ingredients

  • Baking & Spices

    • 1/4 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
    • 110 g Caster sugar
    • 300 g Plain flour
    • 1 tsp Salt
    • 1 cup Semolina, superfine
  • Nuts & Seeds

    • 2 tsp Cumin seeds, heaped
  • Dairy

    • 1 cup Ghee

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Description

When we arrived in Kuwait some seven years ago, most of my days were spent filling out forms or cooking up a storm with the Food Network playing in the background. I’d mimic Nigella Lawson while I stirred my pot of stew and practise my British accent every time Gordon Ramsay came on. Those years shaped my cooking style and opened up a whole new world of food to me. I cooked five meals a day, dessert included. When I recently watched an old episode of Jamie Oliver, I felt that same sense of inspiration to cook. So when the entire house had retired to bed, I tiptoed to the kitchen to make this shortbread. It had to be sweet and salty, like salted caramel. It had to melt in your mouth and yet have a crisp texture. And most important of it all, it had to be good with tea. Armed with inspiration and a tad bit more ghee than I would normally use, these cumin-studded biscuits were made. It’s essentially shortbread, but made with ghee instead of butter, which enhances the flavour of the spices. The recipe can easily be doubled. For best results, use good-quality, pure ghee.

Directions

  • Line a 28 cm square cake tin with baking paper. Measure the ghee and tuck it in the freezer for at least 30 minutes to chill.
  • Meanwhile, whisk the flour, semolina and salt in a bowl to combine. In a separate bowl, place the sugar, cumin seeds and pepper. Rub the sugar and cumin seeds together in between your fingers for couple of minutes. This might be an extra step but it’s totally worth doing to get a cumin-y scent in your biscuits.
  • Add the chilled ghee to the sugar mixture. Using an electric mixer, whisk until smooth and fluffy. Whisk in the flour mixture in two batches. The dough will look like pebbles and that it won’t come together. Dump the mixture into the prepared tin and place a sheet of cling wrap on top. Using your hands, spread the mixture to about ½ cm thick.
  • Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
  • Wrap the tin in cling wrap and freeze for at least 30 minutes or until firm. Alternatively, refrigerate for 4-5 hours or up to 2 days until ready to bake.
  • Remove the tin from the freezer and immediately bake for 25 minutes or until light golden. The shortbread will be very soft, but will harden as it cools. Using a sharp knife, cut into equal-size rectangles as soon as it comes out of the oven. Let it cool completely in the pan, then serve.
  • Note
  • • If you can’t find superfine semolina, blitz regular semolina in a grinder before using.
  • Read our Blog Appétit interview with Kulsum Kunwa and view more recipes by her.
  • Serves: 12
  • Prepare: 25 minutes
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes
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Title:

Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

Descrition:

When we arrived in Kuwait some seven years ago, most of my days were spent filling out forms or cooking up a storm with the Food Network playing in the background. I’d mimic Nigella Lawson while I stirred my pot of stew and practise my British accent every time Gordon Ramsay came on. Those years shaped my cooking style and opened up a whole new world of food to me. I cooked five meals a day, dessert included. When I recently watched an old episode of Jamie Oliver, I felt that same sense of inspiration to cook. So when the entire house had retired to bed, I tiptoed to the kitchen to make this shortbread. It had to be sweet and salty, like salted caramel. It had to melt in your mouth and yet have a crisp texture. And most important of it all, it had to be good with tea. Armed with inspiration and a tad bit more ghee than I would normally use, these cumin-studded biscuits were made. It’s essentially shortbread, but made with ghee instead of butter, which enhances the flavour of the spices. The recipe can easily be doubled. For best results, use good-quality, pure ghee.

Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

  • Baking & Spices

    • 1/4 tsp Black pepper, freshly ground
    • 110 g Caster sugar
    • 300 g Plain flour
    • 1 tsp Salt
    • 1 cup Semolina, superfine
  • Nuts & Seeds

    • 2 tsp Cumin seeds, heaped
  • Dairy

    • 1 cup Ghee

The first person this recipe

nonnascooking.com

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Found on nonnascooking.com

Nonna's Cooking

Cumin, black pepper and ghee shortbread

When we arrived in Kuwait some seven years ago, most of my days were spent filling out forms or cooking up a storm with the Food Network playing in the background. I’d mimic Nigella Lawson while I stirred my pot of stew and practise my British accent every time Gordon Ramsay came on. Those years shaped my cooking style and opened up a whole new world of food to me. I cooked five meals a day, dessert included. When I recently watched an old episode of Jamie Oliver, I felt that same sense of inspiration to cook. So when the entire house had retired to bed, I tiptoed to the kitchen to make this shortbread. It had to be sweet and salty, like salted caramel. It had to melt in your mouth and yet have a crisp texture. And most important of it all, it had to be good with tea. Armed with inspiration and a tad bit more ghee than I would normally use, these cumin-studded biscuits were made. It’s essentially shortbread, but made with ghee instead of butter, which enhances the flavour of the spices. The recipe can easily be doubled. For best results, use good-quality, pure ghee.