My brother and sister in-law went on a business trip to Lahore, Pakistan this past fall (check out my sister in-law’s amazing eye for fashion and design at Runways of Lahore). While they were there, they spent some time with our cousin who treated them to Lahore’s prized shortbread style cookies, Naan Khatai, from the famed Khalifa Bakery.
Now, I’ve heard of this famous bakery and its famous cookies, but my curiosity was put into overdrive after my mom raved about these cardamom laced shortbread cookies. I had to get my hands on these cookies!
Much thanks to the wonders of the internet and food forums, I was able to track down a copycat recipe. This recipe is courtesy of the amazing ladies in the Karachi Chefs At Home group, and it’s a total ringer for the original bakery version.
Naan Khatai (Khalifa Bakery Copycat)
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 cup clarified butter, at room temperature
- 1 cup whole almonds
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 large egg yolks, whisked
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F and set aside a parchment lined baking sheet.
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In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, sugar, clarified butter, almonds, ground cardamom, and baking powder. Mix until thoroughly combined and a cohesive dough comes together.
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Spoon the dough out using a cookie scoop or about 2 tablespoons of dough, and roll into balls. Place spaced 2-inches apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with whisked egg yolk.
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Bake until the edges are just barely golden, about 10 to 15 minutes (cookies will set once cooled). Cool completely on the baking sheet.
I totally love that yellow top with the egg yolks!!! Give it such a pretty look… I feel like grabbing a few of those delicious nankhattais… yumm yum…
Cardamom is in the title but I don’t see it in the recipe. Am I missing it?
oh my goodness! What an epic fail on my part! Thank you for pointing it out, I just fixed the recipe card.
Imadd these naan khatai last night and it was a big hit with my family and friends. They were all gone within an hour after I made them. I will definitely be making these again!! Thank you for the recipe!!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for your feedback! <3
Can ghee be used instead of clarified butter?
Ghee is clarified butter 🙂
Thank you for the recipie.my first batch became like thin cookies with the egg yolks that was brushed on top just like patches. Not sure how I can explain it..maybe I didnt bake it too long . So my 2nd batch I have put it in for 1 extra min .
Thank you for your feedback. I’m sorry you had that experience, I’m not sure what went wrong. Did you use melted ghee? If you used melted ghee, then try refrigerating the dough before baking it. I hope that helps.
Good recipe.
Another day I was watching Khalifa Nan Khatai traveler visit video. It was not showing the recipe but Chef said we mix all stuff and leave in the refrigerator for overnight and then knead it well in the machine next day before taking out and making khatais shape. They add milk over the top, not egg yolk. But egg yolk colors better.
Thank you! I’m intrigued by this information, and I’ll look into incorporating some of these changes to the recipe as well! Thanks for your feedback.
Do you actually add the almonds whole into the mixture or you chop them up? It is a bit confusing. Thanks
Hello Diana! I apologize for the confusion. I’ll edit the recipe to clarify.
To answer your question, yes, the almonds are added whole. The recipe is a copycat of a famous Pakistani bakery, and the almonds are left whole in the cookies.
Hi. Ate you able to provide the recipe with measurements in grams please?
Thank you
Luthfa
Hello,
Thank you for stopping by! Unfortunately I don’t have access to those measurements for you, but in the future I will try to incorporate measurements in grams as well.
I use standard measuring cups and spoons here on the site because they are more easily accessible to most.
Thank you. I appreciate that. I’m from the uk and everything is in metric units lol
You didnot add eggs . In what portion of the recepie do we add eggs.
Hello,
There are no eggs added to the cookies. The egg yolks that are used are simply used to brush on top of the naan Khatai before baking. They give the naan Khatai their signature yellow color.
Hello,
Can I use softened butter instead of clarified butter? If yes, would the measurement stay 1:1?
Thanks!
Hello! Yes, you can totally use unsalted butter. The amount would be the same 🙂
Thanks for swinging by!
I made these and they were delicious , didn’t change anything.
If like me in the uk you need it in grams :
280g flour
200g caster sugar
225g ghee
135g almonds
The other ingredients as per the recipe .
If using melted ghee , the dough will need to go in the fridge.
I used a little less ghee but you can judge and a bit more if it’s not coming together.
Thank you so much for providing this information! I regularly get requests to share ingredients in grams, so this is very helpful! Thank you!
Salaam! Just wanted to say I’ve made this recipe a multitude of times and its been a hit every time. My dad loves nan khatai and he’s loved how large and nutty these are with the toppings. Jazakallah khair for sharing and I hope more people get to enjoy this recipe as much as we have!
With love,
S
Wsalam, thank you so much for your feedback! Your words mean so much to me ❤️
I made these today, and they did not flatten, at all. They stayed in a big ball, with a flat bottom, and the edge of the cookies come off on my fingers. Is this how they are supposed to be?
And have kind of a… sandy (?) texture to them? Maybe that’s right. I’ve never done this before. Ha!
Sounds like you’ve nailed it! Just be sure to allow the cookies to cool completely, as they will firm up as they cool. The hallmark sign of a well made Naan Khatai is the sandy texture. Sounds like you’ve perfected it!