eggless Archives - Sugar et al

Pistachio Shortbread Bites

7|02|2025

Looking for a special, yet simple treat to share with your loved one this Valentine’s Day? These Pistachio Shortbread Bites are the perfect balance of indulgent and elegant. With their buttery richness, nutty pistachio flavor, delicate texture and an irresistible filling, these little bites will melt in your mouth and are the perfect way to show someone you care. Plus, these are eggless!

I don’t know about you but bite sized desserts are my love language since last year. They are easy to share and the portion-control means that everyone can sample a variety of treats without feeling guilty or overindulging. Perfect for keeping those sweet cravings in check.

Pistachios add a touch of sophistication to this classic shortbread, showing you’ve put a little extra love into your baking. The rose petals are a wonderful addition as not only do they make the shortbread bites aromatic, but add a romantic flair to the whole thing.
Happy Valentine’s Day! What’s your favorite treat to share on this day of love?

If you love pistachios as much as i do, don’t forget to check out my Pistachio nankhatai Biscuits and this Easy Pistachio cake

Pistachio Shortbread Bites
Yields 14-16

1 cup (125 g) plain flour
1/2 cup (75 g) pistachios, ground in a processor to resemble crumbs
1/3 (66 g) cup castor/granulated sugar
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup (114 g) unsalted butter, softened, cubed
1 tsp vanilla extract or rosewater
1/2 cup pistachio cream or your favourite preserve ( I used this one)
chopped pistachios, to decorate
edible rose petals, to decorate (optional)

Make the Pistachio shortbread bites : Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line a mini muffin pan with paper liners.

In a food processor or in a large bowl, combine the plain flour, ground pistachios, sugar and baking powder To this mixture, add the butter along with the vanilla extract. Pulse the mixture in short bursts until it comes together to form a dough. If you’re doing it by hand, gently rub the butter into the mixture until it all comes together.

Knead until it forms a smooth dough that can be scooped and rolled into balls easily. Using a small cookies scoop, scoop out dough balls, rolling them in the palms of your hands. Place the dough balls in the muffin liners.

Using the blunt end of a wooden spoon create an indent on the top of each dough ball about 1/4 inch to make room for the pistachio cream or preserves if you’re using them.

Melt the pistachio cream in the microwave so it is of a pourable consistency, about 25-30 seconds. Spoon the pistachio cream into the indents so it creates a filling. Do not over fill. Sprinkle chopped pistachios over the filling.

Place the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.

Remove pan from oven, leave aside to cool shortbreads in the pan. They will be crumbly at this stage so patience is virtue. When ready to serve, decorate with edible rose petals.

Eggless Brownies

17|01|2025

The fudgiest, easiest and most decadent eggless brownies ever. Don’t know if it’s the shortage of eggs in Sydney at the moment or the temptation to create some diet oriented recipes, I’ve been meaning to make these for a long time. After a few failed egg free brownie recipes in the past, I was excited when I took these out of the oven. The texture was a huge tick but then came the wait to taste them. Now I can report back that these eggless brownies are simply divine.

What makes them a hit in my books is that they can be literally put together in one saucepan. No melting chocolate involved. Quick and hassle free! Whether you’re allergic to eggs or love eggs in your baked goods, you will love these irrespective. The secret ingredient for that fudgy finish is condensed milk that keeps the brownies moist and gooey. I’ve added walnuts to them but you can go with any nuts of your choice or even skip them altogether and add chocolate chips/chunks.

The secret to a great brownie is keeping it slighly undercooked. It continues to cook as it cools down in the pan creating that beautiful, fudgy, gooey centre.
If you love egg free recipes, you will love my Eggless Vanilla Cake

Eggless Brownies
Makes 16 medium brownies

1 can (397 g) condensed milk
3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted butter softened
1/2 cup (110 g) brown sugar, packed
1 tsp vanilla essence
1/3 cup (35 g) Dutch processed cocoa
1 cup (125 g) plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped

Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lightly grease the base and sides of an 8-inch (20-cm) square pan with 3-inch (8-cm) height. Line the base and sides with baking paper leaving a small overhang for ease of taking the brownies out.

In a medium saucepan under low heat, warm the condensed milk, butter, brown sugar and vanilla until melted and mixture is smooth. Do not boil. Allow to cool to room temperature

Fold in sifted flour, baking powder and cocoa powder. Mix until smooth. Fold in half the chopped walnuts. Pour into prepared pan. Sprinkle remaining walnuts.

Bake for 25-30 minutes until edges start to pull away slightly and the centre is still a little undercooked. The top should have crinkled. The brownies will continue to set upon cooling.

Pistachio Nankhatai Biscuits (Eggless)

24|10|2024

If you haven’t heard of Nankhatai biscuits before this, they are shortbread biscuits popular in India. The fact that they require only a few ingredients, are eggless and flavoured with spices and/or nuts makes them irrestible.

The chickpea flour and semolina add to the bite and melt in your mouth texture of the Nankhatai biscuits but you are free to use plain flour instead. To keep them authentic, I’ve used ghee but unsalted butter is a great substitute. Giving in to the craziness of pistachio and pistachio based treats, I got my hands on some pistachio paste that I knew instantly I wanted to use in these biscuits. I used this one but i’ve heard that the same brand is cheaper at Costco. If you want to make your own, the Internet is flooded with recipes of pistachio paste.

The unique taste of pistachios paired with a hint of rose and cardamom not only makes them perfect for those who celebrate Diwali but with the upcomng holidays, they would make lovely edible gifts or the most beautiful treats to share with friends and family.

If you love pistachio recipes, you will love these Mini pistachio cakes

Pistachio Nankhatai Biscuits
Makes 18-20 biscuits

1 cup plain flour
3/4 cup chickpea flour/besan (or use plain flour)
1/4 cup semolina
1/2 teaspoon powdered cardamom
1/2 cup ghee (or unsalted butter)
3/4 cup icing sugar
2 tablespoon milk (more if needed)
1/2 cup pistachio paste (home made or store bought)
Extra pistachio paste, to top
Dried rose petals, for garnish

Method : Place the plain flour, chickpea flour, semolina nd cardamom in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, beat the ghee and sugar until the mixture is smooth.

Add the dry ingredients. Mix well. Add milk and pistachio paste and mix well to bring the dough together. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 15-20 minutes.

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Line two baking sheets with baking paper.
Roll out uniform sized balls, place them on the tray I cm apart. Slightly flatten them with your hands and top them with the extra pistachio paste (about a tsp), if using.

Place tray in the oven and bake for 20 mins or until the base of each biscuit starts to brown. Remove from the oven, allow to cool. Decorate with rose petals. Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container for up to a week.

Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies

22|09|2024

I started my cookie baking for the festive season early, this year. Almost every year I end up with a bunch of recipes that I worked on but are too late to post as it’s almost January by the time I can get to it. These Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies are simply amazing. Not only do they come together in minutes, they are egg free, require no chilling of the dough or any rolling out and so on. They are extremely addictive due to the nuttiness of the hazelnuts that are complemented by dark chocolate.

I have used molds to create the design but if you don’t have a mold, use could use a sillicone muffin pan or simply bake the biscuits and then dip them in chocolate. Or you could create thumbprint cookies by filling the centres with chocolate. The possibilities are endless with these Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies.

Chocolate and Hazelnut Cookies
Makes 10-12 cookies

125 g (approx 1/2 cup +1 tbsp) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (60 g) icing/powdered sugar
1/2 cup hazelnut meal
3/4 cup (94 g) plain flour

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Spray your cookie mold with non stick spray. Alternately, line a baking sheet with baking paper.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Fold in the hazelnut meal and flour until combined and a dough is formed that is almost firm and can be rolled into balls easily. Add a little more flour if required.

Scoop 1 tbsp of dough and place in the hole of each mold. Using the back of a spoon or with your fingers, press the dough lightly to take the shape of the mold. You don’t have to be perfect as the dough will rise and spread slightly to fit the molds. If not using a mold, simply roll the dough into balls and place on the baking sheet 1 cm apart. Make a small dent in the middle with the back of a spoon.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and feel firm to touch. Remove from oven, allow to cool in mold for 15-20 mins, then gently turn the mold tray over for the cookies to slide out. Allow to cool completely before coating with chocolate. If you’re baking the cookies on a sheet, allow to cool and fill up with melted chocolate or ganache.

Pipe (or spoon) small amount of melted dark chocolate into a clean mold. Place cookies over the chocolate, allowing some of it to come up the sides. Place mold tray in the fridge to set. Repeat with remaining cookies. Cookies should easily come off the molds.