Natasha Gandhi's recipe for baked Til Gud Cookies is gluten-free. She uses jaggery instead of sugar to make your Makar Sankranti celebrations healthier and relatively guilt-free.

The chef, who was once planning to become a CA, told slurrp.com that inspired by cookery shows she watched, she started cooking when she was a 'kid'.

Til Gud Cookies

Serves: 6-8

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp til or sesame seeds, ground into a paste with few tsp water
• 2 tbsp ghee or avocado oil
• ½ cup gud or jaggery, grated
• ½ cup rice flour
• 3 tbsp ragi flour
• 2 tbsp desiccated coconut
• ¼ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• Water
• Til or sesame seeds, for garnish

Method 

• Preheat an oven to 160°C.
• Line a large baking tray with parchment paper.
• In a bowl add the sesame paste, ghee/avocado oil, jaggery.
  Whisk using an electric beater.
  Add in the rice flour, ragi flour, baking powder and the soda.
  Mix well to form a firm dough.
  Add a little water if required.
  Shape the dough into equal-sized balls.
  Flatten them and garnish with white sesame seeds.
  Place them, an inch apart, on the baking tray and bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden.
  Cool and enjoy.
  Store in an air-tight container and they will last a few weeks.

Editor's Note: For sodium-free cookies use, skip the baking powder and baking soda and use 1 tsp potassium bicarbonate which is ideal for baking. It's available for purchase online.

Natasha Gandhi is a MasterChef India Season 6 contestant and the founder of House of Millets.

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