Karachi Biscuits
Dec 04, 2022, Updated May 07, 2023
Eggless Fruit Cookies, also known as Karachi Biscuits are popular tea time cookies and filled with tutti frutti (candied dried papaya).
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Eggless Fruit Biscuits, also known as Karachi Biscuits are popular tea time cookies. They are stuffed with tutti frutti (candied dried papaya) and usually enjoyed with a cup of hot chai. They also make great edible gifts for the holidays!
These Karachi Biscuits always remind me of Diwali, because we used to get several boxes of these as gifts. Like the Danish butter cookies, these tutti frutti cookies were also very popular to give as gifts to friends and family. I always used to finish the entire box of these biscuits in no time.
These crispy cookies are filled with tutti frutti and flavored with pineapple or rose essence. If you don’t know what tutti frutti is, you might want to look at some other recipes that I have shared on the blog using them like the Tutti Frutti Sooji Cake, Tutti Frutti Burfi Roll. These are candied dried papaya and often used in baked goods, sweets and pastries in India.
This recipe is pretty simple and straight forward and uses basic pantry ingredients. One ingredient which you need for this recipe and it might not be available in your pantry all the time is custard powder (vanilla flavor). The other one if of course tutti frutti. You can find tutti frutti at most Indian grocery stores. These make a great snack and also well with a cup of chai or cold milk.
Ingredients
Flour: these biscuits are made with all purpose flour. You can use whole wheat flour but resulting cookies won’t be as light as the one made with all purpose flour.
Custard powder: For this recipe, use vanilla custard powder. My favorite brand is Brown & Polson which you can find at most grocery stores. If you are using a mango custard powder or any of the fruity flavors, I would skip on the essence and use just little bit of vanilla.
Pineapple essence: this essence is my essence of choice for karachi biscuits but mango and rose essence will also work well in this recipe.
Sugar: for this recipe, I pulse granulated white sugar in a blender and then used that. Do not replace with powdered or icing sugar. However, if you have caster sugar (which is super fine sugar), you can use that directly in the recipe.
Tutti Frutti: these usually come in orange, red and green color. You can find them at Indian grocery stores, sometimes in the refrigerator section.
Method
1- To a bowl add 1 & 1/2 cups all purpose flour (195 grams), 1/4 cup vanilla custard powder (32 grams), 1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder and 3/4 teaspoon baking powder. Remember to add 1/4 teaspoon salt as well if using unsalted butter. I did not use it since I was using salted butter.
2- Stir using a wire whisk until everything is well combined combined.
3- Add 1 stick butter (113 grams) to the steel bowl of your stand mixer. Add 3/4 cup sugar (150 grams). This is granulated white sugar which was run through a blender to get it into a powdered form. Do not confuse it with powdered sugar/icing sugar. You can also use caster sugar in place.
4- Using the paddle attachment of your stand mixer (or use your hand mixer), beat butter and powdered sugar until creamy and smooth. Add 3/4 to 1 teaspoon pineapple essence and mix until combined.
5- Now add in the flour mix and 3/4 cup tutti frutti and mix until combined.
6- Then add 3 tablespoons of milk and mix until it comes together as a dough.
7- You can need more or less amount of milk, so start with 2 tablespoons and add more as needed. I had a soft dough with 3 tablespoons of milk.
8- Divide the dough into 2 equal parts.
9- Then roll each part into a log of around 8 inches long.
10- Wrap the logs with a cling sheet and freeze for 30 minutes or refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours. You can even refrigerate overnight.
11- Take out the dough logs after they have chilled and slice into cookies, around 1/4 inch thick. You would get 40 to 50 cookies depending on how thick or thin you slice them.
12- Pre-heat oven to 350 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the sliced cookies on it. You would need to bake these in 2 batches.
Bake at 350 F degrees for 15 to 17 minutes on until light golden brown from the bottom. Don’t overbake else they will turn super crispy. 15 to 16 minutes is the sweet spot for me but every oven is different so bake accordingly. Also cookies appear soft when you take them out of the oven but firm and crisp up as they cool.
Let them cool completely on a wire rack and then enjoy!
Storage
Once the biscuits are completely cooled, store Karachi biscuits in an airtight container. They would stay good for 10 days or more. But we finish them way before that time.
You can even store them in the fridge and they might last longer that way.
Tips & Notes
- If you don’t have pineapple essence, you can use rose or mango essence in place. Either these work well. Vanilla is also okay but definitely recommend using pineapple, rose or mango for that fruity touch since these are dried fruit cookies.
- Sometimes, I add cashews to these cookies. They give a nice crunch. Roughly chop cashews and then add them to the dough along with the tutti frutti.
- You can make the dough up to 24 to 36 hours in advance. You can even freeze the dough for 2 to 3 weeks in advance. When baking straight from the freezer, add an additional 1 to 2 minutes to the baking time.
- Do not overbake these cookies else they might turn very crispy. Start with 15 minutes and go from there. I usually bake for around 16 minutes in my oven.
This post has been updated from the recipe archives, first published in April 2016.
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Karachi Biscuits
Ingredients
- 1 & 1/2 cups all purpose flour 195 grams
- 1/4 cup custard powder 32 grams, vanilla custard powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup/1 stick butter 113 grams, at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated white sugar 150 grams, powdered
- 3/4-1 teaspoon pineapple essence or use rose essence
- 3/4 cup tutti frutti
- 3 tablespoons milk or as needed, I used whole milk
Instructions
- Take a large bowl and to that add 1 & 1/2 cups all purpose flour (195 grams), 1/4 cup vanilla custard powder (32 grams), 1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder and 3/4 teaspoon baking powder. Also add 1/4 teaspoon salt as well if using unsalted butter. Use a wire whisk and mix until everything is well combined combined.
- Add 1 stick butter (113 grams) to the steel bowl of your stand mixer. Make sure it is at room temperature, along with 3/4 cup sugar (150 grams). This is granulated white sugar which was powdered using a blender. Using the paddle attachment of your stand mixer (or use your hand mixer), beat butter and powdered sugar until creamy and smooth. Add 3/4 to 1 teaspoon pineapple essence and mix until combined.
- Add in the flour mix along with 3/4 cup tutti frutti and mix until combined.
- Add 3 tablespoons of milk and mix until it comes together as a dough. You may need less or more milk so start with 2 tablespoons and add more as needed. Once the dough comes together, divide the dough into 2 equal parts.
- Roll each part into a log, around 8 inches in length. Wrap the logs with a cling sheet and freeze for 30 minutes or refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours. You can even refrigerate overnight.
- Once chilled, take out the dough logs and slice into cookies, around 1/4 inch thick. You would get 40 to 50 cookies depending on how thick or thin you slice them. Pre-heat oven to 350 F degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and arrange the sliced cookies on it. You would need to bake these in 2 batches.
- Bake at 350 F degrees for 15 to 17 minutes on until light golden brown from the bottom. Don't overbake else they will turn super crispy. 15 to 16 minutes is the sweet spot for me but every oven is different so bake accordingly. Let them cool completely on a wire rack and then store in an airtight container.
Notes
- Rose essence or mango essence can be used in place of pineapple essence.
- You can add nuts like cashews to these biscuits too. Roughly chop them before adding to the dough.
- The dough logs can be made in advance. If storing in the fridge you can refrigerated for up to 48 hours in advance. They can be frozen for up to a month.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Hi Manali,
This recipe looks delish! Is the cookie dough suitable for freezing?
Thanks in advance!
Have never tried but I thik you can freeze it. It should work! I would make the dough, slice into cookies and then freeze
Thank you! X
I tried this biscuits and it turned out amazing Mam
Hi Manali, this recipe looks great… I would like to try it this weekend…What can I replace with cardamom powder? Thanks again…
hmm not sure, kind of need it in these cookies. cinnamon is an option so u can add that a little and see
Hi…I loooove this recipe and have tried it couple times. But this time of year it gets hot here in India. Today I doubled the recipe and the dough has become a bit runny. I have kept the dough in the refrigerator for now to let the butter solidify a bit and make the dough workable. Waiting now for the same to happen.
Can you suggest what else can we do off this happens ?
hmm it could be the weather, putting it in the fridge should help. next time, keep a close eye on the butter and don’t let it sit at room temperature for very long (especially since it’s hot in India).
Thanks for the reply. I made the batch today and it’s turned out fine. I had actually had butter outside for a while(lazy me). Your recipes are awesome…. thanks a ton??
very good recepie !
If I add baking powder what will happen. Please reply
Thanks
you can add, but this recipe doesn’t really need it.
Wow Miss Manali your recipes are so amazing. Fantastic presentation and very well explained. I really liked whatever I saw today.
Hi Manali,
They look absolutely gorgeous ! May I ask if I can use vanilla essence instead of pineapple or rose ?
yes you may but pineapple/rose gives them nice flavor!
Essence is important for this recipe?
I would say so, if you can’t fine pineapple essence, use rose water/essence
Will they smell like the Karachi biscuits.
Evertime I opened the box and the smell just wave over my room. Please lemme know and really thanks for the awesome recipe… ? <3
I don’t know 🙂 sorry..I have never quite paid attention to the smell
Looks yummy !
Good work Manali keep posting like this thanks for the recipe
Fantastic recipe. Turned out awesome.
glad to know Aparna
Hi jst tried d recepie today…taste ws prfct but..dnt know it cme out properly….mine is otg oven….150 c ws evn good..but they spreaded nd were lill chewy not crispy…plz help….
hmm they should crisp as they cool down..maybe your oven temperature setting is little off? and you needed to bake at a higher temperature or for a longer period of time?
Hi Manali. D recipie is simple awaome. But one question: 1.5 cup all purpose flour means one and half cup na?. Is der any alternative for butter?
yeah 1.5 cups is 1 and half cup..no replacement for butter here, it gives these cookies a nice flavor so I highly recommend using it..
Thanks Manali. Now i m.gonna definately try it this weekend.
nice recipe thanks for sharing
Karachi Biscuits recipe looks good Manali I will try it.
Hi Manali,made Karachi biscuits today.it came out awesome.thank u so much for sharing the recipe.
glad to know Ajitha, thanks for your feedback!
Made cookies did not come out well at all , i am wondering why there is no baking powder in your reciepe.
Hi Shruti, sorry it didn’t work out for you..it’s a rather full-proof recipe so I am surprised it didn’t come out well. Can you please tell me what exactly went wrong? And regarding the baking powder, yeah these cookies do not need any leavening agent..we don’t want them to rise or spread so the recipe works pretty well without any leavening agent.
Hi Manali
Thanks for the recipe!
I wanna try them right away, could I ask you something before that?
Is powdered sugar the icing sugar or it the normal table sugar in powder form?
Thanks for going through my query ?
Hi Bharti! yes powdered sugar is also known as icing sugar. Normal table sugar in powdered form is different! hope it helps!
Thanks for the early response dear!
I have done the dough and used normal sugar in powdered form, have kept it in fridge now!
Can you suggest if I could do some modifications before baking to revert this blunder?
Bharti, I would say go ahead and bake them…they should still be okay 🙂 If they aren’t perfect, simply make them with powdered sugar next time! Enjoy!
Thanks dear for the words of encouragement ?
Will do as told by you.
I tried these and they were very yummy.Took me back to the bakery biscuits we used to get in my hometown.
Glad to hear that Andrea!
Is there an alternative for custard powder?
Hi Sree, unfortunately no! I mean you can use cornstarch/cornflour in place but vanilla custard powder gives these cookies such a nice flavor! If you have no option, just go for cornstarch and add some vanilla extract. Hope this helps!
Hi Manali, made karachi biscuits using your recipe for the second time.. I just love this recipe ..very easy to follow and awesome results 🙂 I have a question..for how many days the cookies are good to eat and for how many days I can store them at counter and then do I need to refrigerate them or freeze them. Please advice. TIA – Geeta
Hi Geeta! Thanks for making them again 🙂 Hmm good question and I am not sure because they never last that long in my house! But I think they should be okay for weeks in an airtight container at room temperature and maybe more inside the fridge [maybe up to a month?].
Hii Manali, u r fabulous cook.. I m going to try this kar achi biscuits as they r really my favourite.. Wanna ask one thing I don’t have oven I use microwave for all my dishes n baking.. I have 251 recipe list in my microwave so generally I select the dish n it bake automatically.. Recently I baked chocolate cookies N whole wheat cookies but now problem is this in myist there is no option for kar achi biscuits so which menu I will select I m confused.. I hope u will help me.. Thxx
Hello Noopur! Hmm I really don’t have much experience with microwave baking. Okay tell me, what settings you use for eggless butter cookies, the same should work here hopefully.
Which butter did you use?
Can use oral amulbutter??
Hi Madhulika, I live in the US and I used the unsalted butter we get here. You can use amul butter [I don’t know what oral amul butter is!] but it’s salted so in that case don’t add salt in the recipe!
Hello Manali, Tried these biscuits today and they came out soo yummy and perfect….Thank you soooo much for the simple and nice recipe 🙂 I never tasted these cookies before so was bit nervous before making them but they came out reallly well..I am in love with the taste and texture..Big Thanks Again !!!! 🙂 :*
I am glad you liked them Geeta 🙂 You are very welcome!
thr is no need of baking powder or soda in this? ????
yes this recipe doesn’t require any baking powder or soda.
Plz let me know that hw I can bake these in otg..my otg having only 250 degrees
Hi Anuradha! The temperature in the recipe is mentioned in fahrenheit. 350 fahrenheit is 180 celsius so in your OTG bake at 180 celsius. I hope it’s clear now!
Ohh …thanks Manali…for quick reply… actually I m new in banking..thanks for your help…nice recipe and nice presentation…
no problem 🙂 good luck!
Hi Manali thank you for showing a wonderful recipe.. One doubt, when you say refrigerate I assume it’s not in the freezer.. I am gonna try this.. please let me know
Hello Smruthi! Yes it’s not the freezer, you have to put it in the normal refrigerator only till it gets chilled and then you can cut it and bake. Hope that helps!
Hi manali,
Tried this buscuits today. OMG!! They are very addictive. Thanks
Thanks Shibani 🙂 They indeed are!
Hi, the cookies looks awesome. Did you use baking powder in your recipe or have you skipped it?
Thank you Sindhuja, there is no baking powder in this recipe. The recipe doesn’t need any leavening agent.
Your cookies are awesome. I simply love the texture and u have made it irresistible.
I love their multi-colour 🙂 They look very fruity and delicious.
Hey Manali, long time no “see” 🙂 You look great and so does your blog!
The biscuits look awesome with all these colours. I never knew thats what these are called “Karachi Biscuits”. have had these in childhood..
Anyway, bookmarked this recipe now and would try to make them at home. See you around girl 🙂
Nupur! So good to see you back!! 🙂 Thank you dear and see you around!
Thanks Alice!
Thank you Annie! Now that you say, yes they look like stained glass windows, ha!!
It sure was! Thanks Anu!
Thanks Mir! Yes these are perfect with chai!
Wow I didn’t know that!! I need to try the banana and orange tutti frutti!!
Thanks Jen! They are one of my favorites!
I wish I could send you some Marcie!
thank you Danielle!
Hi Manali . ..made these cookies today…only one word …Awesome . ..they are perfectly crispy ….
I didn’t have pineapple so I substituted the same with white Rose essence… thanks for a perfect recipe….
Glad you liked them Monica! 🙂
Thanks!
Hi…wanted to know can apf substituted with whole-wheat flour….if so how much composition
Hi Uttara, you may substitute half of the apf with whole wheat. Hope that helps!
One of my favorite. Looks so colorful, beautiful and delicious 🙂
Thanks dear!
These are so cute and look delicious. I’ve never heard of pineapple essence before, but it sounds delightful!
thank you Amanda! we use pineapple essence quite a lot in India!
Beautiful clicks as always. Feel like grabbing the whole stack. 😉
Thank you Ruchi!
Thank you Dannii!
Thanks Cheyanne!! They are really delicious cookies!
Thanks Angie!
Few days back my hubby visited to Hyderabad and he brought six pack of karachi biscuit. I had this kind of biscuit for the first time and some of them are still left in my box. I am finishing it slowly so that it shouldn’t be over immidietly. Lol
But I think now I can finish it of and make this homemade biscuit at home. Thanks for sharing dear!!!
Yay! now you can finish them and then make some at home 🙂 Thanks Puja!