These sweet, soft and crumbly biscuits are somewhat reminiscent of shortbread, says Farokh Talati. Traditionally, they don’t contain lemon zest, but I find that it imparts uplifting qualities. Go out of your way to make or find ghee for this recipe, as it really enhances that irresistible, biscuity flavour.
Makes 16
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
- 100g ghee or unsalted butter
- 100g icing sugar (or caster sugar finely ground in a pestle and mortar)
- zest of ½ a lemon
- 1 tsp full-fat natural yoghurt
- 80g chickpea flour
- 40g plain flour
- 40g fine semolina
- ¼ tsp baking powder
- a pinch of cream of tartar
- a pinch of fine salt
- seeds of 8 cardamom pods, crushed in a pestle and mortar
- 16 shelled pistachios, or 8 almonds/cashews, cut in half
Method
- Preheat the oven to 150°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
- In a food processor, cream together the ghee or butter, sugar, zest and yoghurt until pale and fluffy. Add the remaining ingredients (except the nuts) and gently combine with your fingertips until the mixture forms delicate crumbs. Try not to be too heavy-handed at this stage – a lighter touch will give a more delicate biscuit.
- Divide into 16 pieces and form each into a ball. Gently press so they’re slightly flatter than a ball, then place on the tray, a few centimetres apart.
- Push either a pistachio or a halved almond/cashew into the centre of each ball and bake for 30 mins until pale golden. Serve with an ice-cold glass of milk.
Taken from Parsi: From Persia to Bombay by Farokh Talati, published by Bloomsbury at £26. To buy from The Week Bookshop for £20.99 (incl. p&p), call 020-3176 3835 or visit theweekbookshop.co.uk.
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denialSpeed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
FDA OKs generic abortion pill, riling the rightSpeed Read The drug in question is a generic version of mifepristone, used to carry out two-thirds of US abortions
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartelsspeed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Susie Dent picks her favourite booksThe Week Recommends The lexicographer and etymologist shares works by Jane Goodall, Noel Streatfeild and Madeleine Pelling
-
6 incredible homes under $1 millionFeature Featuring a home in the National Historic Landmark District of Virginia and a renovated mid-century modern house in Washington
-
The Harder They Come: ‘triumphant’ adaptation of cinema classicThe Week Recommends ‘Uniformly excellent’ cast follow an aspiring musician facing the ‘corruption’ of Kingston, Jamaica
-
House of Guinness: ‘rip-roaring’ Dublin brewing dynasty period dramaThe Week Recommends The Irish series mixes the family tangles of ‘Downton’ and ‘Succession’ for a ‘dark’ and ‘quaffable’ watch
-
Dead of Winter: a ‘kick-ass’ hostage thrillerThe Week Recommends Emma Thompson plays against type in suspenseful Minnesota-set hair-raiser ‘ringing with gunshots’
-
A Booker shortlist for grown-ups?Talking Point Dominated by middle-aged authors, this year’s list is a return to ‘good old-fashioned literary fiction’
-
Fractured France: an ‘informative and funny’ enquiryThe Week Recommends Andrew Hussey's work is a blend of ‘memoir, travelogue and personal confession’
-
Art review: Sixties SurrealFeature Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City, through Jan. 19
