After months of experimenting and tweaking, I present to you my version of the famous Khalifa Nankhatai {Pakistani Cardamom Shortbread Cookies}. Buttery, crispy and full of almonds, these cardamom infused cookies are famous in the city of Lahore.
The Story Of Khalifa Bakers
One of the most famous bakeries in the city of Lahore in Pakistan, khalifabakers has been in business since 1925. As old as Pakistan itself, the shop exists in its original location and serves both as a bakery and a landmark.
Famous enough to be featured in forbes.com, one can't visit Lahore without partaking in the delicious cardamom shortbread cookies. I have a box waiting for me at my parents house everytime I visit and nothing satisfies those 3 am jet lag cravings better!
Travelers to the city visit the bakery, enjoy the Nankhatais and take boxes home for family and friends. Pakistani residents that can't visit in person can now get the baked goods shipped to them, but for those of us living abroad, we're at the mercy of copycat recipes such as this one!
My Grandmothers Nankhatai
I've always loved Nankhatais and my earliest memory of eating this cookie is in my maternal grandmother's kitchen. Her simple recipe was whipped up in no time, a buttery, melt in your mouth small white dome shaped cookie with a dot of yellow on top.
The Khalifa Nankhatai is ofcourse, very different, being flatter, bigger and chock full of almonds. But once you take a bite, there's no going back! Both versions are delicious and worth sharing but due to popular demand today I'll share the Khalifa Nankhatai recipe!
My Recipe
The best part about this Khalifa Nankhatai {Pakistani Cardamom Shortbread Cookies} recipe is how easy it is! Compare it to my Easy Shortbread Cookies recipe and you'll see how much simpler this one is!
As always, prep and measure all of your ingredients so that you have a smooth workflow. The prep is fairly simple but a few key steps are important to the final result of the cookies.
Roast the Almonds
Roast the almonds before chopping them to enhance the flavor of the Nankhatai. I simply preheat a nonstick frying pan and dry roast the nuts. Make sure to stir constantly to get an even roast. Cool the nuts, place them in a ziploc bag and using a rolling pin, roughly chop them.
Roast The Gram Flour
Next, dry roast the gram flour in a similar manner. Stir constantly and roast only till you smell a nutty aroma. Make sure not to over cook it or it will burn. This is an essential ingredient and gives the Nankhatai that Khalifa Bakers taste!
Grind The Sugar
Granulated sugar doesn't dissolve properly in the cookie dough and confectioners sugar is the wrong consistency. If you can find superfine sugar at your local supermarket that's ideal. But if not just run your granulated sugar through a food processor or coffee grinder. Two to three pulses is usually enough.
Crush The Cardamom
I find that using actual cardamom versus store bought powder makes a big difference in this recipe. If you've ever broken open a cardamom pod and crushed the seeds you know exactly what I'm talking about!
As the seeds are crushed, the essential oils are released and with them the aroma. The bottled version loses it's aroma over time so is not as strong. However, it is more convenient so the choice is yours.
Mixing The Batter
Mix the cookie dough in a stand mixer such as Kitchenaid or using hand held beaters, leaving the almonds and milk aside. Once the dough is mixed, stir in the almonds and chill the dough for about 15 minutes. This helps shape the cookies more easily.
Baking The Cookies
After 15 minutes, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and shape the cookies into 24 round balls. Place the Nankhatai on 2 baking sheets and space them out as they will expand when baked. Flatten the shortbread with your hand and brush the tops with the milk.
Bake for 15 minutes and when done, turn the oven off. Leave the Nankhatai in the oven for an additional 5 minutes as this helps crisp up the cookies.
Remove the cookies from the oven and cool them completely before serving!
I hope you enjoy the recipe and find it similar if not exactly the same as Khalifa Bakers famous Nankhatai. Don't forget to rate and comment below if you try the recipe and I'd love to see some pictures of your baking adventures on social media too! Happy Baking!
Khalifa Nankhatai {Pakistani Cardamom Shortbread Cookies}
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 4 tbsp gram flour {besan}
- 1 cup superfine sugar
- 1 cup almonds
- 1 cup ghee
- 20 pods cardamom {SEE NOTES}
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ⅛ cup milk
Instructions
- Dry roast the almonds in a non stick frying pan
- Dry roast the gram flour in a saucepan
- Cool and place the almonds in a ziplock bag and pound them with a rolling pin to chop them roughly
- Crush the cardamom pods using a mortar and pestle and remove the seeds. Throw away the green outer shells and grind the seeds to a powder (SEE NOTES)
- Grind the sugar unless you were able to source superfine sugar at your local store (SEE NOTES)
- Mix all of your ingredients except the almonds and the milk using a kitchenaid stand mixer or hand beaters (SEE NOTES)
- Mix in the chopped nuts
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Cool the mixture in the fridge for 15 minutes
- Shape the cookie dough into 24 round balls and place them on 2 baking sheets, leaving some room in between for the cookies to expand.
- Flatten the top with your hand to create a round disc
- Brush the top with the milk and bake for 15 minutes
- After 15 minutes, turn the oven off but leave the cookies in the oven for an additional 5 minutes
- Remove the cookies and cool completely on the tray before moving to a cooling rack (SEE NOTES)
Dear Nosheen,
Simply Awesome. Thank you very much for this lovely, easy to make, super delicious nankhatai recipe.
I reduced the sugar by about 15% and used baking powder instead of baking soda. It was simply perfect.
I’m based in Dubai and will no longer need to request my Pakistani colleagues to get me Khalifa Nankhatais from Lahore when they go on vacation ?. My Pakistani colleagues could not believe that I baked these cookies myself.
Thank you once again.
Regards,
Justin
Thank You Justin! I’m so glad you loved the recipe and found it easy as well. I appreciate you leaving a review -:)
These were wonderful! I didn’t crush my own cardamom but next time I will! I made a second batch with butter instead of ghee. Don’t wast your time! The ghee makes the texture of these cookies unique!
Thank You so much Renee. I’m so glad you
Liked these and yes do crush the cardamom! It’s a game changer!