These shortbread or Nankhatai as we call them in India are buttery and melt-in-mouth crumbly cookies. The recipe is quite simple with just three main ingredients to go in it, flour, butter and sugar with all the three in almost equal proportion. I added Pistachio powder in the cookie dough and a few drops of lemon extract which gave a wonderful nutty taste with a delightful citrus flavor to them.
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Nankhatai – Lemony Pistachio Shortbread
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 1x
Description
A melt0in-mouth crumbly cookies or lemony pistachio Nankhatai
Ingredients
- 1 cup (240 ml) All purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cup (360 ml) powdered sugar
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) semolina
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) fine Pistachio powder
- 3/4 cup or little less butter/ghee
- 1 tbsp. (15 ml) yogurt/curd
- 1 tbsp. (15 ml) coarse pistachio powder to garnish
- A few saffron strands (optional)
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- A few drops of lemon extract or 1/4 tsp. lemon zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C for 10 minutes.
- Add flour, semolina and pistachio powder in a large vessel and mix well.
- Take another vessel and add butter/ghee, powder sugar, baking powder and yogurt in it. Whisk all the ingredients for 10 minutes till the mixture is light and fluffy.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry flour mix, add lemon extract or lemon zest, saffron strands if using and knead all into smooth and soft dough.
- Take out small piece of dough and roll it into small balls, flatten it slightly and press a little of coarsely ground pistachio powder in the center.
- Make all the cookies in the similar way and arrange them in a baking tray leaving a little gap between each cookie.
- Bake the lemony shortbread at 180°C for about 15 minutes or till the sides start to turn golden. These goodies will be mostly white in color when fully baked.
Notes
- If you wish to skip the yogurt in the recipe, increase the butter in it to form a soft dough.
- While rolling the cookies you will find lots of cracks in it, ignore it if it does not hamper the baking process and retain the shape.
- If you wish to make saffron Nankhatai, just dissolve a few strands of saffron in warm milk and add it to the dough.
- Try a variation of orange Nankhatai using orange extract or orange zest.
- Chickpea flour is also added to the flour mix to make Nankhatai, replace semolina with chickpea flour (besan).
- These cookies stay good for many days and make a perfect gift option.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Baking
- Cuisine: Indian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 cookies
- Calories: 180
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the role of semolina in this shortbread and can I swap it for something else?
The semolina gives the cookies their characteristic crumbly, melt-in-mouth texture alongside the flour and butter. The notes suggest chickpea flour (besan) as a direct substitute for the semolina if you want to make a besan Nankhatai variation. 
Why do cracks appear in the dough when rolling and should I worry about them?
The notes address this directly: cracks in the rolled dough are normal and can be ignored as long as they don’t affect the baking process or prevent the cookie from holding its shape. The cookies will mostly remain white in color when fully baked.
What flavor variations can I make with this base recipe?
The notes list several: saffron Nankhatai by dissolving a few strands of saffron in warm milk and adding it to the dough; orange Nankhatai using orange extract or orange zest; and besan Nankhatai by replacing the semolina with chickpea flour.
Can I skip the yogurt in the recipe?
Yes — the notes say that if you wish to skip the yogurt, increase the butter in its place to form a soft dough of the same consistency.
madam ji, mujhe nankhatai ki recipe hindi me batao na.
like it so much .thks
I am certainly trying this recipe – Sounds as good as it looks :)