I've got an announcement to make. If you are following me on Instagram you'd already know that Grand Mills have approached me to be their unique voice for next couple of months, probably until the end of this year. And I couldn't be more excited! I've always loved working, however took a backseat after becoming a mom. Now I love the opportunities I am gaining through this blog - that keeps me busy, socially active and self-employed. In coming weeks, I'll be sharing with you healthy and nutritious recipes, tips and tricks and more so don't forget to give Grand Mills and Thoughts Over Chai some social media love <3 . Check the end of this post for our social accounts.
Why did I choose Grand Mills? Well, the choice wasn't really tough given it is a local company, based in Abu Dhabi. They source their wheat from wheat-rich countries like India and Australia which is later milled in their own factory in UAE. These two were the reasons enough for me to collaborate with a brand that is fast-moving, caters to local public, is easily available from supermarkets across UAE and is geographically closer. And their prices are quite reasonable to other International brands in the country. And is the only flour I am using in my kitchen today for breakfast, lunch, dinner, cookies, muffins and more.
Since Halloween is around the corner, I thought of playing with something different yet close to my comfort zone. And these cookies were not tough to make! For this recipe, I used Grand Mill's Whole Wheat Flour. It is really a baker's dream who love to use whole wheat in baking. Though it is widely used for chapatis and breads, it spawns wonderfully tender cookies too. I am yet to use the flour in my morning muffins, only after which I can report how good they are in the muffins. The easiest way to add texture and goodness to your cookies is to use whole wheat flour in baking recipes that create more dense flavors!
I don't do scary - anything! These cookies are cute and I had much fun coming up with this as I don't possess any icing skills. I love it when cookies turn out perfect but still has a homemade feel to it and these are just that. These snaps are greatly inspired from Dorie Greenspan's Baking with Julia cookbook although I have made huge altercations to the original recipe of ginger snaps... shhhh! As it is halloween and there are one too many Instagram photos of pumpkin spice, I swapped ginger from the recipe to pumpkin spice, changed all purpose flour to whole wheat and used brown sugar in place of molasses. And decorated as I pleased. These cookies are good on its own but adding a few frills will lift up the spirit of just anyone.
These Pumpkin Spice Snaps are festive, sugary and spicy with their cracked tops and are a great pleasure to feast on with tea or coffee lounging around in a comfortable chair at home. With a child at home, I promise they'll be loved by kids of all ages and make for a perfect after-school treat. And they are just pretty enough to be added to your halloween treats this year!
If you are to use all purpose flour in place of whole wheat then you will have to make slight adjustments to the ingredients below. Increase your butter to 3 tbsp, flour to 1 cup and reduce water to 1 tbsp.
Pumpkin Spice Snaps
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan Baking With Julia.Ingredients : For decoration :
- Grand Mill's Whole Wheat Flour - 3/4 cup
- White granulated sugar - 1/4 cup
- Unsalted butter - 2 tbsps, at room temperature
- Pumpkin all spice - 1/2 tsp (mix together ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves)
- Brown sugar - 3 tbsp
- Baking Powder - 1/8th tsp
- Salt - 1/8th tsp
- Water - 2-3 tbsp, as needed
Method :
Cream together white sugar, butter, brown sugar, salt, baking powder and pumpkin spice in a bowl using a hand mixer, for about 2 minutes. Add flour and water and mix on low until the dough comes together. It should be little sticky. Scrape the dough into a ziplock bag and refrigerate for about 2 hours (I did overnight). Pre heat oven to 180 Degrees C and line the baking tray with parchment paper. Dust the working surface with flour and using a rolling pin, roll the dough to a thickness of 1/8th inch. Dough will be sticky so keep checking the bottom, dusting the counter with more flour as needed. Using a round cookie cutter, cut as many cookies as possible. Place them onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving small space in between. They hardly spread! Bake the cookies for about 7-8 minutes until they are slightly firm from the bottom. Cool on the wire rack as they become crispier as they cool.
If you ever try making these cookies, use #thoughtsoverchai and tag me on Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to see your creations xxDecorating - Mix pumpkin spice with white chocolate butter cream frosting. Using a piping bag, make zig-zags on the cookies, place M & M's as eyes and pistachios for eye-brows and mouth.
On another note, Grand Mills is now an official sponsor for Taste Of Abu Dhabi being held at du Arena Yas Island from 5th to 7th November 2015. So, do check it out. They will be at the Bake and Win Competition where my favorite pattisier Chef Eric Lanlard will have an exclusive baking session with guests.
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