Pakistani Cardamom Shortbread Cookies / Khalifa Nan Khatai (Khalifa Bakery Copycat!) (2024)

April 28, 2018 By ChaiAndChurros 41 Comments

My brother and sister in-law went on a business trip to Lahore, Pakistan this past fall (check out my sister in-law’s amazing eye for fashion and design at Runways of Lahore). While they were there, they spent some time with our cousin who treated them to Lahore’s prized shortbread style cookies, Naan Khatai, from the famed Khalifa Bakery.

Now, I’ve heard of this famous bakery and its famous cookies, but my curiosity was put into overdrive after my mom raved about these cardamom laced shortbread cookies. I had to get my hands on these cookies!

After lots of sleuthing and trial runs, I’ve been able to finally piece together the perfect recipe. Enjoy!

5 from 7 votes

Nan Khatai (Khalifa Bakery Copycat)

CourseSnack, Tea Time

CuisinePakistani

KeywordAlmonds, Baking, Cookies, Copycat Recipes, Pakistani, Snacks, Tea Time

Servings 18 cookies

Ingredients

2cupsall-purpose flour
1cupgranulated sugar
1cupclarified butter, solid and at room temperature
1cupwhole almonds
1teaspoonground cardamom
½teaspoonbaking powder
2large egg yolks, whisked

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F and set aside a parchment lined baking sheet.
In a large bowl, combine all-purpose flour, sugar, clarified butter, almonds, ground cardamom, and baking powder. Mix until thoroughly combined and a cohesive dough comes together.
Spoon the dough out using a cookie scoop or about 2 tablespoons of dough, and roll into balls. Lightly flatten the balls to form discs, and place spaced 2-inches apart on the baking sheet. Brush the tops with whisked egg yolk.
Bake until the edges are just barely golden, about 10 to 15 minutes (cookies will set once cooled). Cool completely on the baking sheet.

Recipe adapted from Facebook.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

Rafeeda - The Big Sweet Tooth
April 29, 2018 at 7:33 am
I totally love that yellow top with the egg yolks!!! Give it such a pretty look… I feel like grabbing a few of those delicious nankhattais… yumm yum…
Reply
Heather
December 4, 2019 at 10:30 am
Cardamom is in the title but I don’t see it in the recipe. Am I missing it?
Reply
- henna
  December 5, 2019 at 12:59 pm
  oh my goodness! What an epic fail on my part! Thank you for pointing it out, I just fixed the recipe card.
  Reply
Fiza Ejaz
January 22, 2020 at 2:33 pm

Imadd these naan khatai last night and it was a big hit with my family and friends. They were all gone within an hour after I made them. I will definitely be making these again!! Thank you for the recipe!!
Reply
- henna
  January 24, 2020 at 11:07 am
  I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for your feedback! <3
  Reply
Madiha Khan
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March 7, 2020 at 1:03 am
Can ghee be used instead of clarified butter?
Reply
- henna
  March 7, 2020 at 2:17 pm
  Ghee is clarified butter 🙂
  Reply
Jamila J kidwai
April 9, 2020 at 8:22 pm
Thank you for the recipie.my first batch became like thin cookies with the egg yolks that was brushed on top just like patches. Not sure how I can explain it..maybe I didnt bake it too long . So my 2nd batch I have put it in for 1 extra min .
Reply
- henna
  April 11, 2020 at 12:29 pm
  Thank you for your feedback. I’m sorry you had that experience, I’m not sure what went wrong. Did you use melted ghee? If you used melted ghee, then try refrigerating the dough before baking it. I hope that helps.
  Reply
  - Saleem Khan
    April 1, 2021 at 6:35 am
    
    Good recipe.
    Another day I was watching Khalifa Nan Khatai traveler visit video. It was not showing the recipe but Chef said we mix all stuff and leave in the refrigerator for overnight and then knead it well in the machine next day before taking out and making khatais shape. They add milk over the top, not egg yolk. But egg yolk colors better.
    Reply
    - henna
      April 3, 2021 at 5:03 pm
      Thank you! I’m intrigued by this information, and I’ll look into incorporating some of these changes to the recipe as well! Thanks for your feedback.
      Reply
Diana Ehsan-Szoboszlai
May 3, 2020 at 8:34 pm
Do you actually add the almonds whole into the mixture or you chop them up? It is a bit confusing. Thanks
Reply
- henna
  May 4, 2020 at 12:48 am
  Hello Diana! I apologize for the confusion. I’ll edit the recipe to clarify.
  To answer your question, yes, the almonds are added whole. The recipe is a copycat of a famous Pakistani bakery, and the almonds are left whole in the cookies.
  Reply
Luthfa Khatun
May 11, 2020 at 5:28 am
Hi. Ate you able to provide the recipe with measurements in grams please?
Thank you
Luthfa
Reply
- henna
  May 13, 2020 at 5:04 am
  Hello,
  Thank you for stopping by! Unfortunately I don’t have access to those measurements for you, but in the future I will try to incorporate measurements in grams as well.
  I use standard measuring cups and spoons here on the site because they are more easily accessible to most.
  Reply
  - Luthfa Khatun
    May 15, 2020 at 8:07 am
    Thank you. I appreciate that. I’m from the uk and everything is in metric units lol
    Reply
Hina
May 18, 2020 at 3:29 am
You didnot add eggs . In what portion of the recepie do we add eggs.
Reply
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- henna
  May 18, 2020 at 3:12 pm
  Hello,
  There are no eggs added to the cookies. The egg yolks that are used are simply used to brush on top of the naan Khatai before baking. They give the naan Khatai their signature yellow color.
  Reply
Huma
June 6, 2020 at 8:09 am
Hello,
Can I use softened butter instead of clarified butter? If yes, would the measurement stay 1:1?
Thanks!
Reply
- henna
  June 7, 2020 at 1:05 pm
  Hello! Yes, you can totally use unsalted butter. The amount would be the same 🙂
  Thanks for swinging by!
  Reply
Rehana
September 21, 2020 at 6:17 am
I made these and they were delicious , didn’t change anything.
If like me in the uk you need it in grams :
280g flour
200g caster sugar
225g ghee
135g almonds
The other ingredients as per the recipe .
If using melted ghee , the dough will need to go in the fridge.
I used a little less ghee but you can judge and a bit more if it’s not coming together.
Reply
- henna
  September 21, 2020 at 8:19 am
  Thank you so much for providing this information! I regularly get requests to share ingredients in grams, so this is very helpful! Thank you!
  Reply
Sahar
May 10, 2021 at 11:50 am

Salaam! Just wanted to say I’ve made this recipe a multitude of times and its been a hit every time. My dad loves nan khatai and he’s loved how large and nutty these are with the toppings. Jazakallah khair for sharing and I hope more people get to enjoy this recipe as much as we have!
With love,
S
Reply
- henna
  May 10, 2021 at 1:47 pm
  Wsalam, thank you so much for your feedback! Your words mean so much to me ❤️
  Reply
BDR
May 12, 2021 at 1:22 pm
I made these today, and they did not flatten, at all. They stayed in a big ball, with a flat bottom, and the edge of the cookies come off on my fingers. Is this how they are supposed to be?
Reply
- BDR
  May 12, 2021 at 1:31 pm
  And have kind of a… sandy (?) texture to them? Maybe that’s right. I’ve never done this before. Ha!
  Reply
  - henna
    May 12, 2021 at 1:53 pm
    Sounds like you’ve nailed it! Just be sure to allow the cookies to cool completely, as they will firm up as they cool. The hallmark sign of a well made Naan Khatai is the sandy texture. Sounds like you’ve perfected it!
    Reply
Zahra Habib
August 11, 2021 at 9:34 pm

This recipe is super easy and makes the most delicious naan khatai. You know its great when your hudband keeps requesting for it. 🙂
I have had so many people ask about the recipe because the naan khatai taste just like the ones you get back home!
Reply
- henna
  August 12, 2021 at 9:48 am
  Thank you so much Zahra! I really appreciate your kind words ❤️
  Reply
Andrea Marquez
September 22, 2021 at 5:37 pm
Can baking soda be used as baking powder?
Reply
- henna
  September 22, 2021 at 9:47 pm
  Baking powder and baking soda have different chemical properties, and unfortunately they cannot be swapped in this recipe.
  Reply
Sarah Suhail
October 5, 2021 at 7:45 am

Brilliant recipe. Substituted butter for ghee (didn’t trust my ghee) and sliced almonds for whole. What a taste of home. Thank you!
Reply
- henna
  October 5, 2021 at 10:06 am
  Thank you so much! This makes me so happy!
  Reply
Kashvi
October 20, 2021 at 12:07 pm

These are DELICIOUS! I love nan khatai and had no idea how easy they were to make. I decided to give these a try, knowing everything on this blog thus far has been excellent, and was not wrong. They were such a great accompaniment to my morning coffee- and the best part was the ease of it all. It was so easy! Everything took a total of about 25mins from start to finish 🙂 next time, I’ll try making her homemade ghee to use in this recipe. One thing I did do different was I added pistachios as well as almonds because I ran out of almonds.
Reply
- henna
  October 24, 2021 at 10:31 pm
  Thank you so much! The addition of pistachios sounds fantastic!
  Reply
Memoona Mian
January 3, 2022 at 3:44 pm

Absolutely foolproof recipe! Super easy to follow and spectacular results. Loved it!!!!!!!
Reply
- henna
  January 3, 2022 at 3:56 pm
  Thank you so much! I’m so happy that you had a good experience!
  Reply
Tulika
January 6, 2022 at 3:26 pm
I love nan khatais, and have grown up on them. I had an ask, is the same recipe as you had shared around 7-8+ years ago? Also can the cardamom be skipped.
Reply
- henna
  January 8, 2022 at 9:46 pm
  This is the same recipe! And I’m so touched that you’ve stuck around for so long <3
  Yes, you can absolutely skip the cardamom if that's not something you're into.
  Reply

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