Cumin, Pepper Crackers/Biscuits

I remember my mother making deep fried crackers with the left over roti or chapathi dough. She would roll it thin and cut into small diamond shapes and deep fry in oil. That mimicked the famous 'Namak para', but was not that rich. Sometimes dough would be made only for this purpose in which case, a little bit red chilli powder or anise or both were added to the dough.

I needed something to go with the soup I made. There wasn't enough time to make bread and that made me think of this alternative and inspiration to make these came from the memory of deep fried crackers that my mother made.

One year back - Craisins and White Chocolate Biscotti
Ingredients:
All purpose flour - 2 cups
Olive oil - 1/3 cup
Water or yogurt - 1/4 cup (I used water)
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Baking Soda - 1/8 tsp
Sugar - 1 TBSP (optional will give a nice taste)
Coarsely crushed black pepper powder - 2 tsp or to taste
Cumin - 1 tsp

Method:
Preheat the oven to 275 F (See Notes). Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients except water/yogurt. When the oil is mixed very well, start adding water TBSP by TBSP. Dough will be a bit crumbly. You can add more water/yogurt if you want, but is not needed. Knead it few times to make the dough. It won't be a smooth dough. Divide into half and roll it to 1/4 " thickness. You will have to use a little pressure while rolling to get it nice and even.  If you have made the dough correctly, it should not stick at all. You don't even need to flour the board where you are rolling. Cut with cookie cutters or biscuit cutters or just make squares with a pizza cutter. Prick the dough with fork and place on the baking sheet. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes. This won't brown at all. It might feel a little soft when you get it out of the oven, but will crisp up once cool. I checked at 30, 35 and 40 minutes and they were pale golden on the bottom at 40 minutes. Serve as a snack or with your favorite soup.

Notes:
You could bake this at 300 F or even 325 F for 30 minutes or so. In that case, it will get a little brown. Watch the time if you decide to bake at a higher temperature.

Have a great weekend.

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