Bihari Cuisine ~ Thekua / Khajur

I had prepared thekuas for this month's Indian Cooking Challenge in advance but unfortunately could not post it on time. The day I was supposed to post them, I hurt my hand and couldn't draft the post. My hand was jammed in between while accidentally our van door closed. Literally my right hand was half inside and half outside when the door was locked. I had to thank God that my hand was not broken that day.
I thought of posting it today since it fits both "Bihar dishes" & "Holiday cooking" themes. Holidays are "festivals" in India and we Indians have no dearth of them. One or other religious celebration would be waiting for us on turn of each page of calendar, if we really care to accommodate them in our busy schedules. And obviously like other cultures, Indian celebrations too revolve around good food. When taking about good food, sweet dishes steal the show like the other regions of the world. However most of the stuff is deep fried and there are hardly dishes involving baking since ovens are not part of a traditional Indian kitchen setup. Since cookies, cakes and other decadent desserts are reigning the blogosphere this month, today I thought of posting thekua, a regional cookie from India. Thekua, also known as khajoor or khajur is from Bihar and Jharkhand regions and is one of their revered prasads, offering to gods. This sweet and crispy dessert is prepared with whole wheat flour, sugar and coconut. It can be stored for a few days and hence an apt one to carry during travels.

Ingredients to make 20 thekuas:
2 cups wheat flour (atta)
1/2 tsp cardamom powder
2 Tbsp grated, dried coconut / copra (or cut into tiny bits)
3 Tbsp solidified ghee
1/4 cup semolina / sooji / rava
1/2 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar, powdered
Water / milk to make the dough (I used 1 cup minus 2 Tbsp of water.)
2 cups oil / ghee to fry the thekuas
(A special mould is used to shape these cookies.)

Method:
* Combine wheatflour, semolina, cardamom, sugar and coconut in a bowl. Add ghee and mix to form a crumbly mixture. Then add water little by little to form a stiff dough.
* Roll out the dough into 1 '' thickness and cut out into shapes desired.
* Heat oil / ghee in a small wok or kadai. When it is hot, drop them gently into the oil and fry them until golden brown on low flame.
Remove them with a slotted ladle and drain them on paper towels. Let cool and store them in an airtight container. 
  
Verdict:
They have a melt in mouth kind texture and very addictive. We all enjoyed them.

Check here to find out what my fellow marathoners are cooking during this marathon.

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