''Kleeb lamduan'' or lamduan flower shortbread cookie (, , ) is a
Thai biscuit
A biscuit is a flour-based baked food item. Biscuits are typically hard, flat, and unleavened. They are usually sweet and may be made with sugar, chocolate, icing, jam, ginger, or cinnamon. They can also be savoury, similar to crackers.
...
in the shape of
lamduan flowers. It is traditionally made from one part of white sugar, two parts of flour, and
lard
Lard is a Quasi-solid, semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering (animal products), rendering the adipose tissue, fatty tissue of a domestic pig, pig. . Kleeb Lamduan cookies are uniquely made by placing them in a container with a tian op () scented candle used for dessert making. When the container is closed the candle is extinguished and the aromatic smoke is trapped inside. Modern recipes are also often adapted from the original by using
icing sugar instead of
caster sugar
Sucrose, a disaccharide, is a sugar composed of glucose and fructose subunits. It is produced naturally in plants and is the main constituent of white sugar. It has the molecular formula .
For human consumption, sucrose is extracted and refined ...
,
vegetable oil
Vegetable oils, or vegetable fats, are oils extracted from seeds or from other parts of edible plants. Like animal fats, vegetable fats are ''mixtures'' of triglycerides. Soybean oil, grape seed oil, and cocoa butter are examples of seed ...
instead of lard and some bakers add a portion of salt.
History of kleeb lamduan
''Kleeb lamduan'' was one of the auspicious authentic Thai desserts served only inside the palace. Nowadays, it is easy to find because descendants of
courtier
A courtier () is a person who attends the royal court of a monarch or other royalty. The earliest historical examples of courtiers were part of the retinues of rulers. Historically the court was the centre of government as well as the officia ...
s have baked and sold the dessert for the public. As time passes, ''kleeb lamduan'' has been changed from the original recipe in terms of the baking process, the number of petals, color, or even the ingredients.
The original recipe used only flour, sugar, and lard (now vegetable oil can be used instead), similar to the ingredients of a
shortbread
Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part sugar, white sugar, two parts butter and three to four parts plain flour, plain wheat flour. Shortbread does not contain leavening, such as baking powder or bakin ...
dough.
When being made, ''kleeb lamduan'' must have six petals in total, three petals on the outside and three petals on the inside. When this process is complete, the next process is to bake it at the proper temperature and flip them regularly to create perfect cooking. ''Kleeb lamduan'' should be evenly cooked and contains crunchy texture. The final process, before served, ''kleeb lamduan'' must be smoked with a scented candle.
References
{{Thai cuisine
Thai desserts and snacks
Cookies