CUSTARD POWDER THUMBPRINT COOKIES (Egg-free)

It was in a magazine in my college library that I first saw a dish using custard powder as its core ingredient. It was a recipe for custard cookies and custard cake by an Indian company (probably Weikfield, I guess). I was super intrigued seeing how custard powder could be used for baking. The only thing I used to bake back then was a simple vanilla cake and an egg free chocolate cake. It was later that I learnt how using cornflour (which is the major ingredient of custard powder) helps with the texture of cookies (giving them melt-in-the-mouth kind of texture) & cakes and how one can use it for making different kind of puddings. Apart from a few western desserts that my mother used to make, it was mostly Indian desserts that were preferred by the family back then. The cookies that we used to have were mostly store brought ones – aata biscuits and nankhatai.

So, my knowledge about baking was pretty insufficient and limited. These cookies are egg-free and use only four ingredients. Adding any aromatic to these cookies is a matter of choice. You can give them a spicy touch by using cardamom powder or cinnamon or you can use vanilla extract. Adding zest of an orange or lemon also works really well. Since we used to enjoy custard with jelly, as kids, I tried to replicate those flavours by turning them into thumbprint cookies with the filling of some chia and raspberry jam. It was yum 🙂

For Cookies

150 gm Butter

½ C Confectioners Sugar (Icing Sugar)

1½ C Flour (Maida)

1/3 C Custard Powder (I used Vanilla), I used Foster Clarks brand

For Raspberry Chia Jam

3 tbsp Raspberry Jam

2 tsp Orange juice

1 tbsp Chia Seeds

Mix together the raspberry jam, orange juice and chia seeds and set them aside for 45 minutes.

Heat the oven at 180 degrees C.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.

Sift flour and custard powder and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, whisk butter (at room temperature) and sugar for a minute. Add flour and custard powder mix to the butter mixture and bring the contents together to have no dry bits. I used hands for this job.

Divide the dough in 16 – 20 (depending on size of cookies) equal sized balls.

Roll the ball in palms of your hands to attain smooth balls. (In case you do not want to make thumbprint cookies, you can simply make indents with the back of a fork) 

Press each ball to approximately half an inch thickness and then place it on the baking sheet and gently make indent in the centre of the cookie. (I used the back of a honey dipper that was round in shape for making the indent)

Repeat the procedure with each dough ball and place them at distance of at least one inch space.

Carefully fill the hollowed cookie with chia raspberry jam and bake for 15 – 20 minutes or till the edges become light brown in colour.

Allow the cookies to cool for five minutes on the baking sheet.

Transfer the cookies on to a wire rack and cool completely.

Enjoy with a glass of milk or with your favourite cup of tea or coffee.

Makes – 16 – 20 (depending on size)

Note – There might be a variation in the quality of the cookies depending on the quality of the custard powder used for the recipe.

Thanks for your visit and see you soon again with another exciting recipe!

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