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Sunday, November 17, 2013

Baked Namak Para

Recipe Source: Chef Sanjeev Kapoor

My daughter looks forward to savory dishes when I speak of evening snacks. In fact when I tell her that I prepared something for her, the first question she shoots at me is whether the said dish is savory or sweet. If she gets any inkling that it is even remotely sweet, she straight away refuses on the pretext of being not hungry. Even if I say it's savory, she wants to make sure that I didn't add any sugar in it. 
Chaklis, mixture, nippattu are her kind of dishes and so these namak para aka savory diamonds fit the bill. Namak para is one of the snacks usually gets prepared during Diwali at home and I usually used to fry them until I came across this baked version. When one has plenty of other calorie loaded stuff on a festive day,  a guilt free baked version definitely sounds very inviting. This is a perfect alternative recipe for the traditionally fried version and yields crispy, crunchy namak para which taste similar to the fried version.

Ingredients: (Yield 40 namakpare)
1/2 cup wheat flour / atta
1/2 cup all purpose flour / maida
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp coarsely crushed cumin seeds (optional)
1 Tbsp white sesame seeds (optional)
3 tbsp softened ghee ( I replaced half the quantity with canola oil.)
5 - 6 Tbsp cold water

Method:
* Add flours, salt and baking powder to a mixing bowl.
* Next add ghee and rub it in with fingertips until the ghee gets incorporated into the mixture.
* Add cumin and sesame seeds to the mixture and combine well.
* Add water and form a stiff dough. Let it rest for about 15 minutes.
* Preheat the oven to 400 deg F. Grease a baking sheet and dust it with flour and keep it ready. I just lined my baking sheet with foil for easy cleanup.
* Dust the rolling surface with flour. Roll out the dough into 1/4 inch disc and cut them into diamonds. Gather the end bits and repeat the process. I pricked holes using a fork just to make sure of even baking. However this step is optional.
* Arrange the cut diamonds on the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 15 - 20 minutes. (Mine were done in 15 minutes.)

This is going to be my contribution to "Mess-Free Kids' Snack / Lunch Dishes". Check what other marathoners are cooking at BM #34.

Comments

19 comments:

Unknown said...

Perfectly baked!! so beautiful and so tempting!!

Sowmya

Hari Chandana said...

These look so cute and perfect!

cookingwithsapana said...

Baked are always a hit ! Such a wonderful treat for kids...

Rajani S said...

Mother used to make these for us when we were kids, the deep fried version of course! These look just perfect..

nandoos kitchen said...

Perfectly baked and looking delicious.

On-going events: Dish it out
Eat seasonal food, fresh

Padmajha said...

Looks perfect. I am off to make them right now. Will come back and let you know how it turns out :)

Priya Srinivasan - I Camp in My Kitchen said...

Wow Suma, i m so loving it!!! Bookmarking it, to try next month's theme!!! :)

Srivalli said...

I am sure kids would love this!

Padmajha said...

Hi Suma, I am back! I made these Namak Para and they have turned out great! Actually we have finished most of it. I have saved a few for the snaps. Thanks for sharing this wonderful recipe....

Usha said...

Bookmarking the recipe. I am going to try this. Perfectly baked!

Chef Mireille said...

these biscuits are a great snack with tea

Corporate to Kitchen said...

These looks so crispy & yummy. I would love to try these soon

Unknown said...

Perfectly baked and healthy version of our snack

Pavani said...

Baked version looks just as good as the fried ones. So addictive and tempting.

Unknown said...

so perfectly baked and delicious looking namak pare :) irresistible and guilt free snack !!

Harini R said...

We love these..the baked option is always my first option!

Unknown said...

Healthy version perfect...

Unknown said...

Bake at what temperature?

Suma Gandlur said...

Unknown, it is mentioned in the post. They are baked at 400 deg F.