During the pandemic, I posted these Swirl Nankhati’s for Eid, here is a repost video again with two or three colored swirls for those who are more visual.

My mom mostly made plain Nankhatai, decorating each with a fingerprinted orange tikka, the familiar glass jars filled with snacks sitting on her tea trolley is what my childhood teatime was all about, nothing store bought, everything homemade. Much later, Mum started to make these chocolate swirl nankhatai that she learnt from a ladies’ cooking group in Nairobi.   

The origin of this cookie goes back to the 16th century when the Dutch occupied Surat and set up a bakery to feed their troops.  When leaving India they handed over the bakery to a trusted employee called Faramji Pestonji Dotivala, who also created the Irani Biscuit, Farmasu Surti Batasa or butter biscuits and the Nan Khatai.

The etymology is quite possible from Mr. Dotivala’s Persian background the words nan (meaning bread) and khat (meaning six, referring to the six ingredients – flour, eggs, sugar, ghee (butter), leavening, and almonds).  You can omit the eggs or replace it with 2-4 tablespoons of whole milk.

I have now added 1 teaspoon of CORNSTARCH to give it that extra snap.

I came across a blog:  (https://www.alicefevronia.com/blog/neapolitan-swirl-cookies) and loved the idea of the the Neapolitian cookie, I adapted that idea and, used it for the tri-colored Nankathai, using raspberry or strawberry essence for the dusty pink color, and it hands down my kids favourite.

Ingredients

• 2 cups unsalted butter or ghee at room temperature
• 2 cups icing sugar
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 cups fine sooji/ semolina
• 4 1/5 cups all-purpose flour ⁣⁣
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 eggs room temperature
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon Cardamom powder (optional)
• 4 tablespoons cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli 100% Unsweetened Ground Cocoa)
• 4 drops of pink color (for Neapolitan version)
• 1 teaspoon Raspberry essence (for THE Neapolitan version)
  * yeilds about 25-30 cookies
  
  
  Half the recipe to this measurement:
• ​1 cup butter at room temperature1 cup icing sugar
• 2 eggs at room temperature
• 3/4 cup fine semolina
• 2 1/4 cups All purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
• ​2 tsp. vanilla at room temperature
• 1 tsp. Cardamom powder (optional)
• 2 tbsp. cocoa powder (I used Ghirardelli 100% Unsweetened Ground Cocoa)
• 2 drops of pink color (for Neapolitan version)
• 1​/2 tsp. Raspberry essence (for Neapolitan version)

Method:

1. In a mixing bowl cream butter or ghee and sugar until pale and fluffy.
   
   
2. Add flour, semolina, baking powder, cornstarch, salt and mix. 
   
   
3. Add egg and vanilla and mix until a soft dough forms. 
   
   
4. Divide the dough into two parts,  using a measuring scale, mine were about 376 gms. 
   
   
5. Take 1 part and return it to the mixing bowl and add cocoa powder and mix thoroughly, add cardamom powder to the second part or leave it as it is. 
   
   
6. OR divide the dough into three parts, and flavour it with Raspberry essence and pink colour/cocoa powder/plain vanilla for the Neapolitan version. 
   
   
7. Roll  dough balls into ropes and line them up side by side; then cut about 1.5cm.
   
   
8. Roll both balls into small balls, about 1.5 cm in diameter.
   
   
9. To make the cookies – take 4 or 6 balls, one of each color and arrange them alternatingly.
   
   
10. Gently squeeze the balls from the outside to form one ball.
    
    
11. Roll the ball in rotating movements between your palms to create a swirl, note that most times the spiral pattern on the bottom of the cookie,press the ball a bit to flatten it and place on a parchment lined baking tray.
    
    
12. You can see my video reel to see how I did it.
    
    
13. Bake at 350* for about 20 minutes, until the bright part begins to turn slightly golden.

Watch me make it!

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