Asha's Garam Masala-Orange Shortbread

Recipe by

Asha Loupy

Serves

Makes About 24 cookies

Difficulty

Intermediate

Photo by:

Asha Loupy

Garam Masala is often relegated to savory cooking, bringing fragrant warmth to everything from saag, country chicken curry, and aloo gobi to roasted tomato soup and even plain ol’ roasted vegetables. But, if you’ve tried my Spiced Apple Galette, you know that the balance of savory and sweet spices—like cumin, coriander, fennel, cinnamon, and cardamom—are perfect in baked goods and desserts. This classic South Asian spice blend loves an equally aromatic partner, so here, it’s paired with orange zest and jaggery in a simple shortbread cookie. The result is buttery, crispy, delicately citrusy cookies with a gentle, lingering spice.

Ingredients

2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons (16g) cornstarch
2 teaspoons (6g) Garam Masala
¼ cup (48g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (48g) Madhur Jaggery or light brown sugar
1 teaspoon Surya Salt
Zest of 1 orange
16 tablespoons (2 sticks, 226g) unsalted butter, softened
Demerara sugar, for finishing

Methods

For the cookie dough

Combine the flour, cornstarch, and garam masala in a bowl, mix well, and set aside.
Add the granulated sugar, jaggery, salt, and orange zest to the bowl of a stand mixer and, using your fingers, rub the zest into the sugar until it looks like wet sand, 1 to 3 minutes. Add the softened butter and beat, using the paddle attachment, on medium-high until just lightening and a little fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, Add the dry ingredients and mix on medium-low until they are three-quarters incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a spatula.

For rectangular cookies

If you want to make rectangular cookies, press the dough into a parchment-lined 8x8” square baking pan, making sure to spread the dough into as even a layer as possible. Cover and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line one baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Carefully remove the chilled dough and prick the surface with a fork every few inches, then cut it in half lengthwise. Taking one half at a time, cut crosswise/vertically into 8 1-inch fingers (each should be 4x1”). Arrange the fingers on the parchment-lined pan, about ½ inch apart, and bake until deeply golden, 22 to 30 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire baking rack and letting cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

For round cookies with a cookie cutter

Transfer the dough to a piece of plastic wrap, form into a flat disk, wrap completely, and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour, up to overnight.
When ready to bake the cookies, line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a baking mat and set aside. If you refrigerate longer than an hour, you may need to take the dough out 10 to 20 minutes before rolling, depending on the temperature of your house, to prevent cracking since it is such a butter-heavy dough.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll so it's ½-inch thick. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut as many cookies from the dough as you can. Transfer the cut cookies to the reserved parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them out ½-inch apart, and prick the tops with a fork two times (make sure not to go through the entire cookie). When the first sheet is full, transfer it to the freezer and chill for 20 minutes.
Gather the dough scrapes, reroll onto a lightly floured surface, and repeat the cutting process. Discard or bake any scraps (rerolling the dough for a third time will result in tough cookies because the gluten has been worked too much). Chill the second sheet of cookies.
While the cut cookies are chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, until golden on the top and starting to turn deep golden in the bottom, 18 to 25 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire baking rack and letting cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

This Recipe Features

Asha's Garam Masala-Orange Shortbread

Recipe by

Asha Loupy

Serves

Makes About 24 cookies people

Difficulty

Intermediate

Ingredients

2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons (16g) cornstarch
2 teaspoons (6g) Garam Masala
¼ cup (48g) granulated sugar
¼ cup (48g) Madhur Jaggery or light brown sugar
1 teaspoon Surya Salt
Zest of 1 orange
16 tablespoons (2 sticks, 226g) unsalted butter, softened
Demerara sugar, for finishing

Methods

For the cookie dough

Combine the flour, cornstarch, and garam masala in a bowl, mix well, and set aside.
Add the granulated sugar, jaggery, salt, and orange zest to the bowl of a stand mixer and, using your fingers, rub the zest into the sugar until it looks like wet sand, 1 to 3 minutes. Add the softened butter and beat, using the paddle attachment, on medium-high until just lightening and a little fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, Add the dry ingredients and mix on medium-low until they are three-quarters incorporated. Remove the bowl from the mixer and finish folding in the dry ingredients by hand with a spatula.

For rectangular cookies

If you want to make rectangular cookies, press the dough into a parchment-lined 8x8” square baking pan, making sure to spread the dough into as even a layer as possible. Cover and refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 1 hour, up to overnight.
When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line one baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Carefully remove the chilled dough and prick the surface with a fork every few inches, then cut it in half lengthwise. Taking one half at a time, cut crosswise/vertically into 8 1-inch fingers (each should be 4x1”). Arrange the fingers on the parchment-lined pan, about ½ inch apart, and bake until deeply golden, 22 to 30 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire baking rack and letting cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

For round cookies with a cookie cutter

Transfer the dough to a piece of plastic wrap, form into a flat disk, wrap completely, and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour, up to overnight.
When ready to bake the cookies, line two baking sheets with parchment paper or a baking mat and set aside. If you refrigerate longer than an hour, you may need to take the dough out 10 to 20 minutes before rolling, depending on the temperature of your house, to prevent cracking since it is such a butter-heavy dough.
Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll so it's ½-inch thick. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut as many cookies from the dough as you can. Transfer the cut cookies to the reserved parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them out ½-inch apart, and prick the tops with a fork two times (make sure not to go through the entire cookie). When the first sheet is full, transfer it to the freezer and chill for 20 minutes.
Gather the dough scrapes, reroll onto a lightly floured surface, and repeat the cutting process. Discard or bake any scraps (rerolling the dough for a third time will result in tough cookies because the gluten has been worked too much). Chill the second sheet of cookies.
While the cut cookies are chilling, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time, until golden on the top and starting to turn deep golden in the bottom, 18 to 25 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire baking rack and letting cool completely. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.