Bolinhas
BOLINHAS:
The most famous cookies from Goa are none other than the very loved BOLINHAS. Made from coconut and semolina (rava) these are crisp on outside and cake-like on the inside. A hint of cardamom brings out the flavour beautifully. These are on my must-buy list whenever I visit Goa. You will definitely find them inside Mapusa market if you are heading to North Goa. I make at-least three batches every time I bake these. The first batch is without the fork shape. Just kept them round. The second batch you can see in the pics below is designed with help of a fork. Ready to be baked. HAPPY HOLIDAYS !!
Ingredients :
- 250 grams Rava (fine semolina) & 125 ml water
- 250 grams sugar
- 250 grams Shredded fresh coconut
- 2 tbsp. Ghee
- 5 Egg yolks
- 1 Egg white (Well beaten till frothy)
- 5 tbsp. All-Purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- 1 tsp cardamom powder
- 1/4 tsp Salt
Method:
- In a vessel, add the sugar and water and bring it to a boil.
- Add the Rava to the sugar syrup and mix it well and cook the mixture on low flame for about 2 minutes. Then off the gas and cover the mixture with a lid. It will soften the rava.
- Grind coconut with very little water, then add the ground coconut to rava mixture, mix well.
- Add salt and ghee, and combine well in the mixture. Leave this mixture aside for at least 4-6 hours or overnight in fridge. (I left it overnight)
- Next morning you need to mix the egg yolks with the Bolinha mixture. Mix well. Also add the beaten egg white it and combine well.
- Add cardamom powder, all-purpose flour (about 1/4 cup ) and baking powder to the mixture. Mix well. The mixture should be of thick consistency.
- Shape the dough into medium ball-sized Bolinhas and press with a fork for the design as shown below. Place the bolinhas on a greased tray.
- Preheat oven at 375 deg F(190 deg C). Bake for 30-35 minutes or till done and the top and nicely golden brown. Cool the bolinhas completely on a wire rack. Store in air tight container.
Tips :
- If the mixture is too sticky to handle then refrigerate for about an hour before shaping into balls.
- You can choose to keep it either overnight or few hours (maybe 3 hours or so) since we have already softened the rava by cooking. It should be good to bake.
- In this recipe we don’t need to roast the rava.
