Peanut Cookie

These cookies must have been one of the oldest cookies served during the Chinese New Year, cos i used to make them following my grandmother's instruction. No written recipe to follow, just know the ingredients, which are ground roasted peanuts, sugar, lard and flour. There was no actual measurements, and somehow the cookie would turn out all right, sometimes sweeter, sometimes crunchier, sometimes not so flavorful.

We would only make these once a year, so the taste varied, the best part was, Grandmother did not realised why that year's cookie was not so flavorful, cos alot of peanuts were devout by us before they could be pounded(yes, the mortar and pestle was used to pound).

Lard was used and that enhanced the flavor and made the cookie very short. Nowadays, for health purpose, lard is not used. If you are game for the real Mccoy, use lard.

There is no fixed recipe and you could adjust it to your own liking. If you like it short, add more oil and if you like sweeter, add more sugar. The cookie will turn out good as long as you can roll it into a ball. The peanuts are the most important ingredient in this recipe, so make sure that they are roasted/fried until very golden brown, to ensure a very fragrant cookie.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups skinless peanuts , fried/roasted and processed till fine
1 cup fine granulated sugar

2 cups self-rising flour

1 tsp Baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

5 - 6 fl oz cooking oil(preferably peanut oil)

Egg yolk + 1 tsp water for glazing

Method:

Mix the dry ingredients like sugar, salt, processed peanuts and flour until they are well-mixed and crumbly.

Add oil bit by bit and knead the mixture until the sugar is dissolved and a small piece of dough can be formed into a ball.

Roll the dough into small balls and place them on a lined baking sheet. Use a straw and press gently on the top of the balls to make round indents.

GLAZE with egg and bake in preheated oven 350f for about 12 - 15 minutes or until golden brown

Serves