Is Baking With Malai Healthy Substitute to Fat? Rusk, Cookies, Cake Recipes With Malai

In my cookie baking basics for beginners, I always harp on the need for solid fat for baking a crispy cookie without baking powder and soda. However, many of you approach me asking for substitutes for ghee and oil, so here's presenting cookies with malai (cream that sits on top of boiled milk).

The next question that pops up in your mind is: Are these crispy with malai?
Or how to bake crispy cookies with homemade cream, which is way healthier than your favorite packaged cream. A recent research report claims that packed creams sold under different names in the market raise the risk of triglycerides and cholesterol. 

Can you give me the reason?

Well, the answer is simple.
There are highly processed fats that blend different ingredients to give you that luscious richness that you crave in your bakes. They are highly saturated and have trans fats.

Thankfully, I have never bought one nor do I ever intend to purchase one .

You can add whipping creams, condensed milk, butter, margarine, blah blah to this list. Please ignore my ignorance too as I do not even know how many types of ready-to-eat/use creams are available in tetra packs these days!!! Sigh!

My purpose behind writing these facts is not to spread negativity but to raise awareness about what is impacting your health goals. Of course, you may want to use these once-in-a-while!

But as far as I am concerned, I literally reject ingredients that could have an adverse effect on health. Take a pledge to own your health and that of your loved ones.

So now the next question is:  Is malai healthy?

Well, frankly, anything unprocessed or minimally processed is healthy.
But when we process something, it loses its nutritional value. Something that is highly processed comes with a flood of health effects too. 

So baking with any fat is processing the food. 

But since we are trying to make healthy processed food at home and reject highly ultra-processed bakes from the stores, choose your ingredients wisely. Pack as much nutrition as you can in any food that you prepare so that the advantages outnumber the disadvantages.

Malai was a favorite once

I love malai in its natural form so do all Punjabis of my time. When you eat it as is, this is when you can dub it as healthy. 

I remember adding malai to my hot cuppa when I was young. Every sip was heavenly. I would also add malai as a sandwich layer between two Biscuits and enjoy it as a tea-time treat.

Then the health bug bit me hard and cautioned me against eating anything and everything fat.
I stopped and quit fat. That's a MISTAKE.

 
You should not eliminate fat but use in moderation. That's it.
Your body needs fat for the absorption of certain fat-soluble vitamins and cell growth.

How to bake with malai?

First, should you bake with malai?

Well, if you have no problem with baking with ghee, butter, or oil, then malai is not a bad choice either. We will discuss saturated, unsaturated, and trans fats in another post.

Let's keep this post to baking with malai, which lends flavor and richness to a bake and you do not need any other ingredient to make the end product richer and flavorful. No doubt, homemade malai is way healthier than the storebought counterparts available in tetra packs.

That's my observation.

When it comes to baking with malai as an alternative to ghee or butter, please omit any liquid in the cookie recipe, first.  

So making cookies with malai gives you an alternative to ghee, butter, and oil.
Even when it comes to using malai in cookies, use one that is thick and refrigerated for better results. Additionally, you may omit any liquid in the recipe, especially if your malai is not thick.
If it's thick and creams well with the sweetener, you may use a little amount of liquid. 

In fact, if you use this homemade cream or malai, then you can easily omit milk powder in a recipe that calls for one. So if a recipe requires ghee/butter as fat and uses dehydrated milk, you may substitute it with malai. That's my perception.

However, malai cookies might lose their crispness over a period of time, especially if you use any additional liquid in the recipe.

I bake cookies, cakes, rusks, kachoris with malai and they come out so so well and flavorful. A little goes a long way :) Do not forget to check why and how to make your baking ingredients at home here.

3-ingredient Paro cookies

So here's presenting my favorite malai cookies that appealed equally to my darling Paro when she was a 2-year-old.
Atta malai cookies with jaggery ( 3ingredients)

3-ingredient atta gur malai cookies for kids

3-ingredient Malai Jowar cookies with jaggery recipe in airfryer

What is in a simple cookie recipe, which is healthy, delicious, and crunchy too? If you are on a gluten-free diet, then jowar cookies will appeal to you. Perhaps this healthy biscuits recipe uses 3 ingredients with the addition of cashews making these rich, yummy, and flavorful. You ought not to be a jowar flour recipe lover in order to go crazy for these delicious bites. Here's the written recipe of jowar malai cookies for you.

Jowar coconut cookies with jaggery recipe

Besan Sattu Millet Cookies with Jaggery, Malai

Millet jaggery biscuits or cookies recipe in India is easy, nutritious, and delicious. Whether you are looking for a multi millet cookie recipe or a power-packed tea-time treat, this healthy biscuit recipe Indian is for you. Eggless baking is what you love but you also want to relish healthy cookies with protein, fiber, and minerals. You love cookies but do not want to eat maida biscuits that are laden with artificial preservatives, refined sugar, additives, colors, and chemicals. So here's presenting a very healthy cookie recipe with malai and jaggery. As always, Ravneet Bhalla bakes no maida, no sugar biscuits without baking powder and soda.

   

Millet Karachi Biscuits (Eggless recipe with jaggery, malai)

Oats Malai Cookies with jaggery recipe

Baking Cakes With Malai

When you bake a cake with malai, it is rich, delicious, and flavorful. I love to bake cakes and biscottis with malai as I feel it lends richness as well as makes a great substitute for an egg.

For example, this sooji chocolate cake with malai is absolutely delicious and rich. It is flavorful and long-lasting too.

Sooji Cake With Malai (No Egg recipe)

Dalia Burfi Recipe With Malai (No baking powder/soda)

If you are wondeirng how to use malai in cake recipe, here's an example.

Basbousa cake without sugar, oil, butter (sooji dates cake)

Eggless Sponge Cake Without Baking powder/soda (healthy cake recipe with malai)

My breakthrough cake recipe, the healthy cake gave me the confidence to jumpstart baking without raising agents. It was one delicious fruit cake that uses no artificial colors, flavors, or additives. Besides, the healthy cake is without baking powder and soda, which makes it kid-friendly as well. When you are able to bake an eggless whole-grain sponge cake without baking powder or soda or self-raising flour, your happiness knows no bounds, right? You might be wondering whether there is something like eggless baking without baking powder or soda. Well, this was exactly what I had been thinking until I tried this eggless cake without baking powder today. What started as an experiment has worked out wonders for me. If baking without baking powder interests you, then you will be a permanent visitor here, for we think, live, and eat healthy and primarily focus on baking without baking powder or soda.

eggless cake recipe without baking powder or soda

Brownies without egg, baking powder, soda (with malai)

Eggless brownies healthy recipe anyone? If you love brownies and have been looking for a healthy brownie recipe without baking powder or eggs, you are in for a surprise here. The post is all about eggless brownies without baking powder/eggs/soda/chocolate. Yes, so many exclusions for this brownie eggless healthy recipe from scratch do not make it any less flavorful. Here's the written recipe of brownies.

Malai Oats cake recipe without baking powder or soda

What is a healthy cake recipe? of course, a cake without maida, baking powder,soda,egg and eno can be considered the healthiest, right? Yes, this type of oats cake is a reality. ravneet bhalla presents one of the healthiest fruit cake recipes without baking powder and vanilla essence ever. the airfryer cake recipe indian can be baked in oven, otg, convection or on stovetop. ask me how? this is a valentine's day special healthy cake in airfryer. 

Sooji coconut rusks with malai recipe

You have relished coconut cakes, but never thought of a coconutty biscotti? Well, if you are yet to try a coconut cake rusk with semolina, then I am giving you a failproof recipe. I love coconut and I am fond of eggless biscottis. When I decided to combine coconut with semolina, it gave me the yummiest eggless suji cake rusk recipe. Don't believe my words?

coconut sooji rusk

Atta cake rusk recipe with jaggery, malai (eggless)

How to bake crispy cookies with jaggery (no baking powder or soda)

This video has answers to your common questions: 

How is jaggery used in baking? 

Is jaggery good for baking? 

What type of jaggery is good for baking?

Can I use whole jaggery for baking cookies?