Curry Crackers

This is a quick and easy recipe for making little spiced biscuits that are very tasty on their own and also make a great scoop for dipping into things, mango chutney for starters or a cooled dahl - but anything vaguely spicy would definitely work.

I made them last weekend as a starter for dinner Saturday and wanted to include it here in case my mother is looking for something new to add to her nibbles repertoire. It is safe to say she is Queen of the Nibbles Platter, making her own labni, marinating feta, making all manner of dips and crispy things to be enjoyed with a drink before dinner. And every time a different selection.

Curry Crackers

1 tspn ground cumin

1 tspn ground coriander

1/2 tspn fennel seeds

75g ghee

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 tbspn minced ginger - grate it then chop it finely

1 tspn ground turmeric

1/2 tspn chilli powder

250g plain flour

1/2 tspn baking soda

1 tspn salt

125ml cold water

Melt the ghee in a small frypan and fry the garlic and ginger over a gentle heat until fragrant - about 2 minutes. Don't let them colour only soften. Add the spices and cook for 30 seconds then take the pan off the heat.

In a food processor blend the flour, baking soda, salt and spiced ghee until the mix looks like breadcrumbs. Add the water and blend till the dough forms a ball. If you add the water in stages you'll see when it has amalgamated - the amount of cold water needed is not an exact science but rather depends on the flour. Once you have a good ball of dough put it into a plastic bag and rest it for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 170C/Gas 3. Line a baking tray with parchment or greaseproof.

Roll the dough into a long sausage and cut into 6 pieces. Roll out one piece on a lightly floured bench until it is about 3mm thick. Use a small cup or glass - or indeed biscuit cutter if you have some - to cut shapes out of the dough and arrange them on the baking tray.

Bake for 15 minutes till the crackers are crisp, golden and a bit puffed up. While the first batch cook, repeat the process with the second piece of dough to make more crackers. Cool the first batch on a wire rack while you cook the second batch.

At this point I had two dozen crackers which was enough for my needs so I have frozen the rest of the dough for another day when it will be even quicker to make these little treasures.

The original recipe for these came from Christine Manfield's Spice book, which is always a pleasure to use.