Hello!
Sajjad and I came to Kannur a few weeks ago and spent two weeks quarantining upstairs, at home. It was very strange to come home after 6 months and not be able to hug my parents or go to my room. The two weeks flew by, and a huge part of that was because mum kept sending up a steady stream of food to keep us full and presumably, to give us something to do (eat). One evening, there was a rack with fresh-out-of-the-oven biscuits waiting for us at the top of the stairs, and eating those while sipping on a mug of hot tea, while it rains like it’s the end of the world is definitely in my top 3 ideas of bliss. These biscuits, a dark, chewy ginger nut, is a favourite from my childhood and one that mum loves as much as I do. They’re quite easy to make and don’t require beating sugar with butter (my least favourite baking task). You do need powdered ginger (which you’ll get from any supermarket) and golden syrup, which is readily available on Amazon.
We’re now done with quarantine and back to regular programming, but the first thing we made when we came down was another batch of these biscuits.
Also, here are a few pictures from around the house. The rains have turned the garden into a tropical jungle, complete with loud bird (and animal) calls. The other morning, S woke up from his sleep saying “can you turn off the squirrel outside?”
Ginger Nuts
(Makes 30)
Ingredients
75 g butter (Amul salted is fine)
100 g brown sugar
5 tbsp golden syrup
200 g AP flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp ginger powder
2 tsp powdered cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar (for rolling the biscuits)
Method
Sieve the ginger powder, baking soda, cinnamon and flour together and set aside in a large bowl.
Melt butter, brown sugar and golden syrup on a low heat, stirring frequently, until everything is melted. Let it cool for 5 minutes.
Make a well in the flour mixture and add this melted syrup.
Mix well and bring together with a spatula. It will form a soft dough.
Place the sugar on a plate.
Roll the dough into 30 marble-sized rounds and roll it in the sugar.
Place the rounds well apart on a prepared baking tray and bake at 175 degrees Celsius for 12-15 minutes, until the top is dark-golden brown.
Allow the biscuits to cool for a minute before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Note:
If you’d like the biscuits to be crisp rather than chewy, after placing on the baking tray, flatten the top gently with your thumb before placing in the oven.