MY MEMORIES WITH “PEEPEWALE” BISCUITS

Every time I notice these in the Indian grocery stores, even at Walmart, my recurring memories fly me back to those teenage days in India.

We did not call them “Peepaewale” biscuits. These were just plain cookies custom-made from a local bakery shop.
Also referred to as Punjabi biscuits, these non-smooth and little grooved on the top is triple the size of 22-karat gold biscuits.
Since these crunchy cookies were contained in a ‘pipa,’ that is the reason they are called ‘Peepaewale’ biscuits here in Canada. Perhaps, it is a marketing approach by the manufacturers to draw the nostalgic feel and taste of the sweet goodies.

I remember enjoying the crispy delicacies with the spread of home-made butter on top and a glass of lassi as our breakfast during summer days before heading off to school.

The most blissful part of those childhood memories was when my mother assigned me the job of getting them made from our neighborhood friendly baker.

The ingredients were few. Whole wheat flour, ghee, sugar, and one or two more items, that I don’t recollect. And there was an empty ‘pipa,’ a rectangular tin container with lid and provision of locking it, to pack the baked product.

My reward for the volunteering service was that I could eat as many cookies as I could in the 10-minute walk back home. But once at home, the pipa was locked, and the key-control was with my mother.
However, a few times, I managed to slide my slim and tender hands into the locked pipa and steal some cookies. My mother knew about it but pretended she did not. And I kept enjoying my “peepaewale” biscuits, now a part of sweet memories.

By Promod Puri