Monday, December 22, 2008

Krusczyki... with a twist

"All the good things in life happen by accident."



I am the author of the above quote...and I say this out of personal experience, take my marriage for instance. You can read all about it here.

Believe it or not, the first cookies were created by accident. In fact a lot of the famous history of cookies is filled with accidents. The very first cookies were just an oven temperature test. Early bakers used very small amounts of cake batter to test their oven temperatures before baking the final cake. These little test cakes were called "koekje", which means "little cake" in Dutch. By accident, the first "cookies" came into being.
Each country has its own favourite cookies. The word 'cookie' generally conjures up an image of something sweet. However, there are a few savoury versions too. Something sweet...something salty...isn't that what life is all about! But then again I digress.





I recently made Krusczyki, which is a deep fried Jewish dessert cookie. I made mine savoury though (with all the sugar-overdose I have been on), a nice twist for this overtly sweet festive season.


Savoury Krusczyki
Ingredients-

4 egg yolks
1 cup cream cheese
2 tsp carom seeds
1 tsp caraway seeds
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup melted butter
3 cups all-purpose flour
oil for deep frying


Method-
In a large bowl mix together all ingredients (except oil) well. Stir into a ball, then turn dough out onto a floured surface . Knead dough for 1/2 hour.
Let dough rest for 10 minutes.
Roll out the dough like you would a flat bread, about 1/4th of an inch in thickness.
Using a cookie cutter cut into desired shapes. (Traditionally they are made bow-shaped.)
Once cut, use a fork to mark/impress the cookies.
Heat oil in a wok and deep fry on medium high heat till crisp and brown on both sides.

Tip: The fork impression helps in cooking the cookie throughout, thus making it crisper.




Traditionally Krusczykis are made in the form of bows/ribbons. However since I am a person who puts all her heart into whatever she does and then expects the results/outcome, with a twinkle in her eyes...I made mine in the form of hearts and stars. ( Yeah I can do with a little self -praise once in a while..lol.)


This goes out to Meeta's current Monthly Mingle-'World of spice cookies'.


Crunch...crunch...munch..munch!!

19 comments:

  1. So true about good things happening by accident.Cute savories cookies are just right for munching:)

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  2. great yaar! lovely and crunchy...hey you can send it to srilekha's savory event...loved the heart shaped cookies and yes life itself is an accident :)

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  3. yup...have already sent an entry to SriLekha..will send again :)

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  4. feel like munching these right now!

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  5. Boy, thy look delicious I'm with you, crunch, crunch.

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  6. Hi Navita,
    This look real tasty and a great side dish for a evening chat. Remember our "nimki", this is not not much different from those, I'll try them without eggs. Will update you soon.

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  7. Navita,

    Thanks for visiting my blog. Those crackers look really yummy. Cute shapes too. I'm sure they're very tasty fried but have you ever baked them in the oven instead?

    Thanks,
    Hanaa

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  8. Navita,

    Thanks for visiting my blog. Your cheesy crackers look really yummy. I'm sure they're tasty fried in oil, but have you ever tried baking them in the oven? Please let me know if that worked for you.

    Thanks,
    Hanaa

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  9. Yes Hanaa, I did.. only two pieces...they were fine,only not browned as I only have a MW here.
    However they are crunchier when fried.

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  10. I just love savory type cookies - the spices in this remind me very much of our Indian "mathi" looks great!

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  11. Kruscicky (spelling?) is also a Polish cookie. I like that you made them savory. I would love to try them!

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  12. Yes Meeta, they kind of taste like "mathi" only that they are cheesy so they roll in the mouth:)

    Hey Lori, I know they are made in Poland too. Its a small world :) As for the spelling...the book I adapted the recipe from spelled it this way (!!) :o

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  13. Came here thouhg Monthy mingle. lovely cookies! carom seeds make me like them even more, especially!

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