Make this delicious and soft shortbread cookies made with gulab jamun mix – a 6-ingredient, eggless cookie recipe that’s perfect for any occasion!
Learn how to make these gulab jamun cookies with detailed step-wise pictures.
Indian fusion cakes like gulab jamun cake, rasgulla cakes are quite popular these days. Before getting into the cakes, I thought I would share the gulab jamun cookies first. I know I am sharing this on New Year’s Day, but these cookies are easy to make, and they are perfect for any occasion.
Let’s get into the details of these cookies.
Jump to:
- What is gulab jamun?
- What are shortbread cookies?
- Gulab jamun shortbread cookies
- Ingredients and the ratio that I followed
- Note about butter
- Dietary Specifications | Eggfree & Vegetarian (EF & V)
- Servings & Storage:
- How to make gulab jamun cookies:
- Recipe Notes | Ingredient Alternatives | Tips:
- More Eggless Cookies
- 📖 Recipe
What is gulab jamun?
Gulab jamun is a famous Indian sweet, and we prepare it with milk-solids. These deep-fried goodies soaked in sugar syrup are hard to resist. While you can make gulab jamun from scratch, you can find store-bought gulab jamun mix as well. You can use this mix for making gulab jamun as well as these cookies. :-)
I used the store-bought MTR brand gulab jamun mix (not sponsored) for this recipe, and I made these cookies with half the measure of gulab jamun mix and all-purpose flour.
What are shortbread cookies?
We make these shortbread cookies with just three ingredients – sugar, butter, flour, precisely one part sugar, two parts butter, and three parts flour. Some call these cookies 1:2:3 cookies because of the ratio. These cookies have high butter content, but no, they are not butter cookies.
Butter cookies have a little high ratio of flour. These cookies are indeed ancestors to the butter cookies. Shortbread originated in Scotland, where it is known as biscuits. According to nibble.com, the history of these cookies traces back to the 12th century.
Like every other recipe, these cookies evolved, and now there are several variations to this recipe. But most of the shortbread cookies are made without eggs and with the three main ingredients – flour, butter and sugar, and other flavorings.
Gulab jamun shortbread cookies
I made these cookies in the shortbread style. I used one part of sugar, two parts of butter, and three parts of flour. And for the flour, I used half the measure of gulab jamun mix and half the measure of all-purpose flour.
This ratio worked well, and it yields soft cookies that hold the shape as well.
I went with weight and not by volume. I highly recommend going by weight for the shortbread cookies.
Ingredients and the ratio that I followed
As mentioned before, I followed the 1:2:3 ratio. I used 2 oz of powdered sugar, 4 oz of butter and 3 oz of gulab jamun mix, and 3 oz of all-purpose flour, making it 6 oz of flour. And for the flavoring, I added some ground cardamom and, for the texture, some nuts.
As I mentioned before, I did not go with volume. But have included approximate cup measure as well for the sugar and flour for your reference. But please, if you can, go with the weight either in ounces or grams.
The nuts make them slightly crumbly while slicing the dough, but that’s ok. You can ignore or add nuts of your choice. Please refer to the recipe notes for ingredient alternatives.
Note about butter
Make sure to use butter at room temperature. The butter should be soft and should hold its shape, but it should form an indentation like below when you press. I usually leave the butter stick on my kitchen counter for a few hours.
The recipe is straightforward. You cream the butter and sugar and then add in the flour and flavoring agents. Make the dough, refrigerate, then slice and bake. Now let’s see how to make these cookies with detailed step-wise pictures.
Dietary Specifications | Eggfree & Vegetarian (EF & V)
These cookies are eggless vegetarian cookies with nuts. But you can skip the nuts and make them completely nut-free.
Servings & Storage:
I got 18 cookies that were approx ¼ inch thick. Depending upon how you shape and slice, the number of cookies might vary.
These cookies are super addictive, and they vanish in no time. So far, I have stored it only for about three days. I am sure they will stay good for up to 1 week.
How to make gulab jamun cookies:
- In a mixing bowl, add the sifted powdered sugar and the butter chopped into chunks.
- Using a hand mixer or whisk, cream the butter and sugar for 2 to 3 minutes until it’s light and fluffy.
- Now add the all-purpose flour and cardamom powder.
- And combine the sifted flour using the hand mixer for 30 to 45 seconds. It will be crumbly like below.
- Now add the sifted gulab jamun mix and the chopped nuts.
- Using your hand, gently mix the flour and form a smooth dough, as shown in the picture below. Do not knead the dough.
- Place this dough on a cling wrap/plastic sheet, roll it gently into a log, and wrap it tightly with the cling film.
- Refrigerate it for 2 to 3 hours. Remove from the fridge when you are ready to bake. Here is mine after 3 hours.
- Now slice ¼″ thick cookies from the log. As we have used nuts, the dough might crumble, but that’s completely fine.
- Preheat the oven to 350 deg F and line the baking tray with parchment paper. Place the sliced cookies into the baking tray like below. I got 18 cookies.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes at 350 deg F. These cookies won’t turn brown. The bottom part will turn lightly golden brown, and that’s sufficient.
- Remove it from the oven, let it cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer them to the wire rack for further cooling.
- Let it cool completely before storing it in an air-tight container.
Recipe Notes | Ingredient Alternatives | Tips:
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature, and do not cream the butter and sugar for 3 minutes if using a hand mixer.
- You can combine flour with a hand mixer, but I felt it is easy to incorporate them well with hands instead of a mixer. If you are using the machine, do not overmix the dough.
- Nuts are optional, and instead of pistachios, you can use other nuts or dried fruits of your choice. Make sure to chop the nuts finely so that slicing will be easy.
- I have tried cardamom powder and rose essence for flavoring, and both work great. You can use a flavoring agent of your choice.
- You refrigerate the dough overnight as well. I have never frozen the dough.
- Finally, make sure to sieve the powdered sugar, flour, and gulab jamun mix.
- You can use regular sugar instead of powdered sugar, but the cookies will be slightly crunchy. Powdered sugar yields soft cookies.
More Eggless Cookies
If you try these gulab jamun shortbread cookies, please don’t forget to comment and rate this recipe. If you have any questions, please leave a comment, and I will get to it asap. Make sure to follow me on my Pinterest for more healthy and delicious ideas! Follow me on Instagram or join my Facebook Group for more gardening and recipe updates.
📖 Recipe
Gulab Jamun Mix Cookies | Eggless Gulab Jamun Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Hand mixer
- conventional oven
Ingredients
Measurement Details: 1 cup=240ml; 1 tbsp=15ml; 1 tsp=5ml;
- 2 oz powdered sugar a little over ⅓ cup
- 4 oz butter unsalted, at room temperature (1 stick)
- 3 oz all-purpose flour approx ⅔ cup
- 3 oz gulab jamun mix approx ⅔ cup
- 1 tbsp pistachios chopped. Optional and you can use other nuts also
- ¼ tsp ground cardamom; you can use ⅛ tsp rose essence as well
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the sifted powdered sugar and the butter chopped into chunks.
- Using a hand mixer or whisk, cream the butter and sugar for 2 to 3 minutes until it’s light and fluffy.
- Now add the all-purpose flour and cardamom powder.
- And combine the sifted flour using the hand mixer for 30 to 45 seconds. It will be crumbly like below.
- Now add the sifted gulab jamun mix and the chopped nuts.
- Using your hand, gently mix the flour and form a smooth dough, as shown in the picture below. Do not knead the dough.
- Place this dough on a cling wrap/plastic sheet, roll it gently into a log, and wrap it tightly with the cling film.
- Refrigerate it for 2 to 3 hours. Remove from the fridge when you are ready to bake. Here is mine after 3 hours.
- Now slice ¼″ thick cookies from the log. As we have used nuts, the dough might crumble, but that’s completely fine.
- Preheat the oven to 350 deg F and line the baking tray with parchment paper. Place the sliced cookies into the baking tray like below. I got 18 cookies.
- Bake for 12 to 13 minutes at 350 deg F. These cookies won’t turn brown. The bottom part will turn lightly golden brown, and that’s sufficient.
- Remove it from the oven, let it cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer them to the wire rack for further cooling. Let it cool completely before storing it in an air-tight container.
Notes
- Make sure the butter is at room temperature, and do not cream the butter and sugar for 3 minutes if using a hand mixer.
- You can combine flour with a hand mixer, but I felt it is easy to incorporate them well with hands instead of a mixer. If you are using the machine, do not overmix the dough.
- Nuts are optional, and instead of pistachios, you can use other nuts or dried fruits of your choice. Make sure to chop the nuts finely so that slicing will be easy.
- I have tried cardamom powder and rose essence for flavoring, and both work great. You can use a flavoring agent of your choice.
- You refrigerate the dough overnight as well. I have never frozen the dough.
- Finally, make sure to sieve the powdered sugar, flour, and gulab jamun mix.
- You can use regular sugar instead of powdered sugar, but the cookies will be slightly crunchy. Powdered sugar yields soft cookies.
Nutrition
I am not a nutritionist. The nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It varies depending upon the product types or brands.
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