Boros – East Indian Coconut Cookies

This post may contain affiliate links. (Disclaimer here) And if you wonder why some images are marked TheWingedFork, it's because Abby's Plate was once a part of my other blog TheWingedFork.

Desserts icon on Abbysplate website.
Egg icon on Abbysplate website.
Snacks icon on Abbysplate website.
Jump to Recipe
5 out of 5 Stars by 3 readers!

Borose is a delightfully sweet coconutty cookie made with semolina. This traditional East Indian cookie is perfect for tea or as a Christmas dessert!


East Indian Boros or Borose is a delicious coconut cookie that is crispy outside and soft on the inside. Made with semolina also known as rava or sojee, rose essence, and coconut, this coconut cookie is simply mouth-watering. They are similar to the Bolings and the Goan Bolinhas, all thanks to the Portuguese who ruled parts of India for a bit. This biscuity treat adds to your Christmas sweet platter and makes it complete. Who does not love coconutty sweets?

This coconut cookie can be served for Christmas or as a tea-time snack year-round, just like so many more of our East Indian goodies. So let’s find out what goes into making these delicious cookies…

What Ingredients Do You Need To Make Boros?

All you need to make borose are powdered sugar, butter, sojee or semolina, eggs, ground coconut, and rose essence or rose water.

How To Make Boros (Coconut & Semolina Cookies)?

Beat the egg whites to a froth with a whisk or a fork. Add the egg yolk and whisk them again.

Separate egg white in a bowl.
Egg Whites
Beat the egg yolk.
Egg yolk

Add in the butter and then the powdered sugar and mix well.

Add butter to the egg yolk.
Add butter
Add sugar powder to the batter.
Add sugar powder

Then add the semolina and rose essence and mix together.

Add sojee to the beaten eggs.
Add sojee
Grate the coconut in a bowl.
Grated coconut

To this mixture, add the grated coconut and mix. If you do not have freshly grated coconut, you can soak desiccated coconut in rose water and use this instead.

Add cocount to the sojee mixture in the batter.
Add coconut to the sojee mixture

Form into a mound and allow to rest overnight or for a few hours, depending on the time you have in hand.

Mix all ingredients together.
All ingredients mixed
Cover and leave the batter to rest.
Cover and leave to rest

After a few hours or the next morning, line a tray with baking paper and sprinkle with flour. Make small balls of the mixture, flatten them, and place them on the tray. You can also make a design on them with the tines of a fork and even add color. Bake these in a pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes, and they will expand a bit.

READ NEXT  17 Cottage Cheese and Fruit Recipes!
Baked Borose placed on butter paper and baking tray.
East Indian Boros are ready

Once the timer goes off, remove them from the oven and allow them to cool. And as always, you can taste to check how they have turned out 😉 Once cool, store in air-tight containers until Christmas or tea-time.

Remove the fresh batch of Borose from the oven.
Borose just out of the oven
Serve East Indian borose on a plate with tea.
Serve East Indian borose for tea!

So whether you serve it after Christmas dinner or lunch or just for any regular day at tea, this coconut cookie will keep you happy.

Add red color stripes to the borose.
Sometimes we add red color, just to make them look gaudy Indian!
Serve East Indian borose on a plate with tea.

East Indian Borose (Semolina Coconut Cookies)

Sarah
East Indian Borose is a delightfully sweet coconutty cookie made with semolina. This traditional cookie is perfect for tea or as a Christmas dessert!
5 out of 5 Stars by 3 readers!

Click the stars to add your rating! Left you don’t like it, right you love it!

Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Resting time 2 hours
Total Time 2 hours 45 minutes
Course Christmas, Dessert, Snacks
Cuisine East Indian, Portuguese
Servings 35 Cookies
Calories 74 kcal
Desserts icon on Abbysplate website.
Egg icon on Abbysplate website.
Snacks icon on Abbysplate website.

Ingredients
  

  • 3 Egg Whites
  • 1 Egg Yolks
  • 30 gms Butter
  • 300 gms Powdered sugar
  • 300 gms Semolina
  • 1 tablespoon Rose Water
  • 1 Coconut (Grated) Ground fine

Instructions
 

  • Beat the whites of 3 eggs and 1 yolk with a whisk or a fork.
  • Add butter and powdered sugar and mix well. Then add the semolina and rose essence and mix again.
  • Lastly add the freshly ground coconut and mix. Allow to rest for a few hours or overnight.
  • Once done resting, make small balls, flatten them and make a design using the tines of a fork. Add color using the same fork if you want to.
  • Place them on a tray that has been dusted with flour.
  • Bake in a pre-heated oven for about 30 minutes and your Boros are done!

Please click to rate the recipe! Left you don’t like it, right you love it!

Notes

  • If you do not have fresh ground coconut, you can use desiccated coconut.
  • Replace the rose essence with rose water if using desiccated coconut, so it soaks well.
  • The weight of the coconut should be equal to the weight of the sugar or semolina. 
  • Using powdered sugar helps, as you do not have to worry about the cookies being grainy.
READ NEXT  Apple Halwa Dessert | सेब का हलवा | Seb Ka Halwa

Nutrition (Per Serving)

Calories: 74kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 10mg | Potassium: 21mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 29IU | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 0.4mg

Disclaimer: Nutrition Information per serving is estimated by a third party software based on the ingredients used, and is for informational purposes only. It will vary from product to product, based on methods of preparation, origin and freshness of ingredients. Please consult the package labels of the ingredients you use, or chat with your dietician for specific details.

This printable recipe card is for home use only. For more recipes head over to AbbysPlate.com

Tips & Tricks For Baking the Yummiest Borose!

  • If using desiccated coconut, soak it in rose water for a while.
  • The weight of the coconut, should equal the weight of the sugar or the sojee.
  • The butter should be at room temperature when mixing it.
  • Use the tines of a fork to create the lines or hole design. You don’t need any fancy equipment for this.
  • Add color using the same fork if you want to.
  • Using powdered sugar helps, so you do not have to worry about it being grainy.
  • If you do not have rose essence, use a little bit of rose water.
  • If you want a veg cookie, try the Maltese kwarezimal or the East Indian nankhatai.
READ NEXT  Cashew Rock or Almond Rock - East Indian Style

Questions about Coconut Cookies

What Is Boros?

Boros is an East Indian cookie made from coconut and semolina with rose essence. It is similar to the Goan Bolinhas.

Can I Use Desiccated Coconut?

Yes, if you do not have freshly ground coconut available, use desiccated coconut. But first soak the desiccated coconut in rose water to make it moist.

What Other Coconut-Based Desserts Can We Make?

Other East Indian coconut-based desserts include bol lucrecia, bol de coc, coconut cake, thalie sweet, and tartlets.

What Other Recipes Can I Make With Semolina/Rawa/Sojee?

Other East Indian recipes you can try are snow balls, chocolate honey balls, bolings, sojee sweet, thalie sweet, carambolas, bol de coc, and many of our cakes.

If you want our traditional East Indian recipes on hand, the Abby's Plate Cookbook Series books are available online or in-store in most countries.

Latest Book:
East Indian Celebration
Festive Recipes from Abby's Plate


See the full list of books here!

Other Recipes You Might Like

Pinterest images of red color striped borose and regular borose.
Pinterest images of mixed batter, baked batch of borose and red striped ready to eat borose.

1 thought on “Boros – East Indian Coconut Cookies”

Leave a Comment

Recipe Rating