Peanut Cookies

Time really flies, doesn’t it? It is now the beginning of February, and Chinese New Year is just around the corner. Isn’t it exciting? It is one of my favourite time of the year. The long holidays, red packets, new clothes, home decorations, lively Chinese music, family reunions, and more importantly… the food. Lots of it. The celebrations are never complete without the vast array of baked goodies and auspiciously named dishes, which can only mean that it is a time to put all diet plans aside, gorge ourselves silly and be merry. I got so caught up with the festivities mood that I had succumbed to baking some new year treats for my family this year.

These cookies are my father’s favourite and a must-have come every Chinese New Year. I had baked dozens of batches of these cookies and they always turned out great! These cookies will melt in your mouth, literally. It has a really fine and crumbly texture, thanks to the finely-ground peanuts and icing sugar. Oh-so yummy. Bake these and you’ll never regret it. You really can’t go wrong with peanuts, trust me.

Just to warn you though, the preparations for these cookies are pretty laborious due to the fact that you have to toast some raw peanuts first, then painstakingly remove their skins, and lastly grind them up in a blender or a food processor. Thank god I have my mom to help me out with those. Or else, they would take me forever before I even get started on making them. And in this tropical heat, standing over a wok stirring peanuts till they are fragrant is an absolutely horror.

Peanut Cookies

Preparations:

1. Roast 400 grams of raw peanuts in a dry wok (or roast them in an oven at 180°C) till they become fragrant.

2. Cool the roasted peanuts and remove the skins.

3. Grind 350 grams of peanuts in a blender or a food processor till they are finely ground.

4. Split the remaining whole peanuts in half and set them aside.

5. Line your baking tray with baking paper and preheat the oven to 180°C.

Ingredients:

  • 300 grams finely-ground peanuts
  • 300 grams all-purpose flour
  • 80 grams icing sugar
  • Corn or vegetable oil
  • Peanut halves
  • 1 egg (beaten for egg wash)

Method:

1. In a bowl, add the peanuts, flour and icing sugar. Mix them all together till they are well combined.

2. Add in the oil gradually till they form a dough. The dough is ready once it can be rolled into a ball and does not stick to your hands. If the dough is too wet and sticky, mix in additional flour. If it is too dry and crumbly, mix in more oil.

3. Divide and roll the dough into small balls and place on the baking tray. Repeat until the baking tray is filled with dough.

4. Place peanut halves at the centre of each dough balls and press them down lightly to make them stick.

5. Brush the surface of the dough balls with egg wash.

6. Bake them at 180°C for 15-20 minutes, or until they look golden brown.

7. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them sit on the baking tray for 5 minutes or so to set them (because they can be very crumbly fresh out of the oven). Then, transfer them to a wire rack for cooling. Keep cookies in an airtight container after they have cooled down completely.

These cookies are not very healthy, obviously. Oh well, there’s always the guilt trip to the gym after the celebrations. In the meantime, I shall just keep munching on these. So. Darn. Addictive. Om nom nom.

I am submitting this post to Chinese New Year Delights 2013 hosted by Sonia aka Nasi Lemak Lover.