These cookies are famous throughout the Middle East, I have tried many variations, but this is my favorite. This recipe needs to be started a day ahead. It is traditionally made by shaping the dough into special wooden moulds, if you have one, great, if not, it’s ok, see the picture above to give examples of how you can easily shape them.
Recipe:
Day before –
1 Cup Butter, melted
1 Cup sprouted flour, or whole wheat (this will make it heartier tasting)
2 Cups semolina (cream of wheat)
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. baking powder
¼ Cup organic cane sugar
Next day-
8 Tbs. filtered water
1 Tbs. orange blossom water ( or water if you don’t have)
Filling-
1 ½ Cups dates
6 Tbs. butter
Instructions:
Put the flour, semolina, salt, baking powder, and sugar in a mixing bowl. Rub in the melted butter with your fingertips until it is like a soft meal. Cover the dough and let it rest overnight.
For the filling, place dates and butter in food processor and blend to a paste; you can do this at any time.
Next day, add waters and mix using a fork until the dough is the consistency of pie dough. Your dough is now ready; you can roll the dough into small walnut sized balls and place filling half the size of your dough ball inside and roll back into a ball, then flatten it slightly. Or you can make it a pressed cookie, see photo above. You can shape it any way you like, these are examples.
If you happen to have a wooden mould, you can use that as well, for best results, use a nylon stocking over it so it won’t stick.
Pre heat oven to 325 F, and cook on a buttered cookie sheet for about 25 minutes or until slightly reddish brown color.
Enjoy with a cup of tea 🙂
A Nutritional Makeover 