Check out our popular Mangalorean nankhatai (butter biscuits).
Recipe card
Karachi bakery-style osmania biscuits recipe
I was first introduced to these cookies at Karachi Biscuits in Hyderabad. These biscuits are very popular in South India, especially Telangana, and are served with Irani Chai or cut chai. In some other states, there are variations to these, and they are sold as butter biscuits or butter cookies. Another popular sweet from this bakery is Karachi biscuits (tutti frutti cookies). You will totally fall in love with these. Since these are flavored with saffron and cardamom, they are also called cardamom cookies or saffron-flavored biscuits. You can also try our Mangalorean bakery-style nankhatai (Indian shortbread biscuits). One of the best cookies (biscuits) you can bake this festival and holiday season. Also, check out our best Indian desserts and Christmas desserts recipes.
Ingredients
Osmania cookies are eggless cookies similar to shortbread biscuits (nankhatai). To make this tea or Osmania biscuits, flour, sugar, butter, milk, and custard powder is used. This is then flavored with saffron and cardamom.
Why is cardamom used in baking? How does it taste in cookies?
Cardamom (Elaichi) is a very popular spice used in Indian and Scandinavian cooking and baking. Cardamom has a very strong, complex flavor and fragrance. It is mainly used as it enhances cookies or any desserts with its unusual taste. But be careful while adding cardamom powder as it has strong flavors. A small pinch is sufficient to impart the cardamom flavor. If you are new to this spice, use only ⅛ tsp. You must crack the pods and remove the seeds to make cardamom powder. Then, grind them finely or coarsely in a mortar & pestle or mixer or, blender or coffee grinder. The outer skin can be used to flavor rice dishes, make masala chai or tea, or simply be discarded.
Why is saffron or kesar used in cooking and baking?
Saffron, or Kesar, is called red gold as it’s a premium, expensive spice and is grown in just a few places around the world. It is used to give color and enhance the taste of the dish. You can use it both in sweet and savory dishes like kheer, burfi (barfi), ladoo (laddu), pulao, biryani, kulfi, etc. Even though it’s expensive, add one or two strands of kesar for a totally different impact on the bowl of food.
What is custard powder?
Custard powder is a fine yellow powder made of thickeners (cornstarch), milk powder, and flavorings like vanilla, mango, kesar, strawberry, etc. It gives cookies a delicate texture and makes them a little crumblier.
Why is milk powder used in cooking and baking?
When milk powder is added to cookies, it makes the cookies slightly chewy - which makes it stand out from the other cookies. Milk barfi or milk powder burfi, or Rose barfi is the best recipe you can try using milk powder. Vienna bread – another popular, no-fail bread recipe, also uses milk powder in its preparation. Two of my favorite Indian desserts gulab jamun and barfi with different flavors (badam pista Barfi), can also be prepared using milk powder.
Step-by-step instructions
In a bowl, add saffron strands and ½ cup milk, and keep this aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C. Grease a baking tray or cookie sheet and keep it aside. In a bowl, add softened butter and sugar and mix until well combined. Add 2 tablespoon of milk and mix it again. In another bowl, add all dry ingredients - flour, milk powder, custard powder, cardamom powder, baking powder, and salt - and mix them together. Add this dry ingredient mixture to the butter-sugar mixture and mix it well to form a dough. The dough should be soft and break easily like any other shortbread biscuit. If you have time, you can cover the dough and keep it aside or refrigerate it for 30 minutes. Resting the dough is totally optional.
Shape and bake cookies
Dust the working surface. Roll the dough to 1-inch thickness. If you find it difficult to roll the dough, simply shape and press with your hands to the desired thickness. Then, using a round cutter, cut them into a round shape and place these biscuits on a baking tray a few inches apart. Simply pour the saffron milk mixture on top of these round biscuits on baking tray. Make sure each biscuit is soaked in this flavored milk. Pour out the extra milk from the cookie sheet or baking tray. Bake these biscuits for about 15 minutes or until light brown on the edges. Remove from the oven. Let these cookies remain on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, and then transfer them to a cooling rack and let them cool completely. Osmania biscuits or Tea Biscuits are now ready. Serve and enjoy with a hot cup of Indian tea.
Storage instructions
These cookies remain fresh for up to 10 days when stored in an airtight container.
More bakery-style sweets
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