These famously delicious, no-fuss walnut cookies usually make an appearance every Chinese New Year.
They are crispy, crumbly and nutty, and best enjoyed with a steaming cup of tea or coffee just about any time of the day.
Ironically, most recipes for these cookies contain no walnuts.
This recipe however, has been edited and does include ground walnuts and shortening to create that perfect taste and texture.
Each cookie is also topped with walnut pieces to render it more visually appealing and to give some indication as to which nut the cookies are made from.
The end result is a buttery, crumbly and nutty cookie that is oh, so memorable.
Ingredients
- 250 g all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 50 g ground walnuts
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 120 g granulated sugar
- 20 g butter
- 1/2 teaspoon alkaline water
- 150 g peanut oil or cooking oil
- 50 g walnut halves
Egg wash
- 1 egg yolk plus 1 teaspoon oil
Method
- Mix flour, baking powder, ground walnuts, salt and sugar in a bowl.
- Using the tips of your fingers, rub the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles a crumbly texture.
- Add in the alkaline water and peanut oil.
- Mix until the dough comes together in a soft ball.
- Divide dough into balls of 20g each and flatten the top using a fork.
- Top each cookie with half a walnut.
- Brush the top of each cookie with egg wash.
- Bake at 170ºC for 30 minutes or until the tops are slightly brown.
Tips
- You can use either salted or unsalted butter for this recipe.
- You can also use 10 g butter and 10 g shortening instead of 20 g butter.
This recipe can be found in Rasa Malaysia.
Low Bee Yinn is a food blogger and cookbook author.