Poha/Chire in a cookie,
who would have thought that?? I am sure a lot of you would be reading this
recipe just for that name of it. For all my non-desi
friends, let me translate and elucidate. Poha
is the Indian name to beaten rice. It’s a favourite breakfast item, eaten
everywhere in India, with veggies or dairy products.
"Flattened rice contains no cholesterol and saturated fat at all. Also, the sodium content is very less and thus the calories in the beaten rice are not harmful. Moreover, it contains nutrients like iron, vitamin C, vitamin A and calcium too." Source- foodlve
I personally have never come across
a cookie made with thus, or rather any sweet dish made with it. But, I had to
do something crazy, and hence added my beloved poha in a multigrain cookie I was
making for my little guy.
My little guy is in a very weird stage right now. He loves
to eat, but prefers eating porridges over biting food. He is just too lazy to
chew, a practice I am really keen that starts soon. So I took the longer route
of introducing him to biscuits/cookies that excites him enough for him to start
chewing like a pro. The road is long, but my thoughts are focused. And this
recipe is an outcome to it.
Nutritionally, this recipe is quite well rounded, but if
you prefer sweeter cookies, replace the brown sugar with its whiter counterpart.
For us, it was perfect as we can’t eat things too sweet. Don’t cringe on butter,
as that is what will bind the dough and bake it to crisp perfection. The beaten
rice, though used only a half cup, will impart a great texture to the cookie. Feel
free to load it with chocolate chips, dry fruits and nuts; I didn’t as my 1.5
year old will not be comfortable chewing on such hard things.
Ingredients
½ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup Poha/Chire/beaten rice
1 ½ cup oats
1 cup refined flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
14 tablespoons salted butter, softened
½ cup sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
A handful of dried cranberries to decorate
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, oats, Poha, baking powder and baking soda. Set it aside.
In large bowl, use whisk to cream the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add an
egg and vanilla. Beat until well mixed.
Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients until mixed to form
a rather sticky cookie dough. Mix in the nuts or chocolate chips, if using.
Use a 2-tablespoon scoop to drop rounded portions of cookie dough onto a
parchment-lined baking sheet. (If you don't have a scoop, roll 2 tablespoons of
dough into a ball with your hands.) Space cookie dough about 2-1/2 inches apart
on baking sheet. Flatten them slightly and bake in a pre-heated oven for 14
minutes until its brown and crispy around the edges. It will remain still
slightly soft in the middle. Cool completely on pans before removing.
Cheers!
