FAKE BUTTER COOKIES

Do you know how I spend my time these days? I browse cookbooks and websites and drool over all the yummy stuff people create. And ask me what happens after that.Nothing! I feel full. I feel I've eaten everything. I feel happy and sad at the same time thinking I should have done something about it and write about it on my blog. See,I have a LOT of free time these days!

So during one such free time, I thought of searching for cookies. Found many pictures of them and everything looked like a modified chocolate chip cookie,to me. Either they were way too buttery or they had too much frosting or they had too much sugar or they made a lot of cookies. I don't know whether it's the butter or is the amount of refined flour or refined sugar in a recipe which turns me off. I really wonder how people,those people who makes sugary cakes covered with even sugary frosting (I've even read 8 cups of confectioner's sugar in a frosting recipe)live. Maybe they bake it for someone else.If so, how do they cut into it and show us the slice? Hmmm...too many questions and no answers to it. Well,now getting back to these Faux Butter Cookies. My search got modified into Indian cookies and it lead me to various blogs carrying similar recipes for butter cookies but Sum's recipe grabbed my attention.It made butter cookies without butter! Yes, without butter.It called my name and I baked it.We devoured it. Heaven was right in between my fingers then. Yum. It was totally yum.

FAKE BUTTER COOKIES 
Yields 20 nos.

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar/ finely powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
a pinch of salt
Scant 3/4 cup vegetable oil

Method: Preheat the oven to 350F/180 C and line a cookie sheet.
In a medium bowl,whisk the dry ingredients together. Drizzle in the oil little by little until the dough looks crumbly, like a tart dough. Do not add any more oil. Form small lime sized balls and roll it out smooth in between your palms.It may look hard to roll but if the dough is made properly,it smoothens into perfect round balls. Place them on the prepared baking sheet,1inch apart from each other and bake for 15-18 mins. Mine were done at 17 minutes. Take it out and let them cool completely on a wire rack.Store in an airtight tin.

These are really really good and made me think of a cookie we get in a bakery in Kannur. They have a melt-in-the mouth feel and also have a soft powdery texture over it. It sticks to your fingers making you want to lick it off after the cookie is done with.So as soon as the cookies came out of the oven, I set them out to cool. When they were cooled, we both, Amma and Vaava thought of taste testing it. He absolutely loved it. No doubt about his Amma too.

So just now,before I photographed it,he woke up from his sleep and found the cookies sitting pretty in the bag. You will not believe the fuss he made until I broke one and shared it with him. He was at his best behaviour after that :-)