Cookies Stuffed with Lokum - Kak Halqom - كعك حلقوم

Hope everyone had a great Eid! We had hoped to put up some Eid cookie recipes before the day but it was not to be. This is one of the recipes for cookies we made which was a great favorite with everyone, coming second only to everyone's favorite, magroud! These cookies are soft and crumbly and stuffed with nuggets of unflavored lokum (Turkish Delight) which melt in your mouth. We liked the fact that they look like leaves and preferred them without the traditional powdered sugar coating.

Ingredients

3 to 3and 1/2 cups flour 

1/2 cup orange blossom water

1 cup ghee or melted  butter

1/2 cup oil

1 teaspoon yeast added to1/4 cup warm milk 

2 tablespoons powdered sugar 

(or melt the sugar in the orange blossom water)

1 teaspoon baking powder

About 400g unflavored  lokum (Turkish Delight)

icing sugar for coating (optional)

Mix all the ingredients for the dough, which should be soft but easy to handle.

Cut the lokum cubes into small pieces.

Make an oval shape, flatten it slightly with a finger, place the piece of lokum inside and roll the edges over.

Smoothen and shape, using the garasa.

 Place them in when the oven has reached a temperature of 220 celsius.

Remove when golden brown and roll in powdered sugar. Or not, as the case may be :)

Libyan Savoury Cookies: Kaak Malih كعك مالح ليبي

These savoury cookies are the typical accompaniment  to thick Arabic coffee, and they are also served with tea alongside sweet cookies and Libyan special breads. This savoury cookie recipe is very easy and uses store cupboard ingredients, making Kaak Malih an everyday treat. The savoury cookies are usually shaped into simple rings or braided as shown below. These savoury biscuits are light and very moreish so bake a little extra for everyone.

Makes 30  Cookies

Ingredients
100 ml milk
100 ml melted butter
100 ml corn oil
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 headed teaspoon salt
300 grams flour

Decoration
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup sesame seeds

Pour the milk, melted butter and oil into a mixing bowl and mix.

Sift the flour salt and baking powder into the bowl.

Combine into a dough, preferably with an electric mixer.

Knead just until  smooth, don't handle the dough too much.

Place in a plastic bag and leave in the fridge for an hour.

Roll into ropes and cut  finger size pieces.

Thin out each finger then braid.

Place on an oven tray covered with baking paper.

Brush with the beaten egg. Sprinkle sesame seeds on each.

Bake at 220°C in the middle of the oven for around 12 minutes until light gold in colour.

Shortbread Cookies with Cloves: Ghraiba bil qurunful الغريبة بالقرنفل

Ghraiba are delicious, easy to make and endlessly versatile, a simple recipe that allows for different flavorings.

These Arab shortbread biscuits are both a stand by for unexpected guests and ubiquitous on special occasions like Eid.

This version cuts the melt-in-the-mouth sweetness of Ghraiba with the sharp piquancy of cloves.

Ingredients

200g butter
60g powdered sugar
300 g flour (may vary depending on the type of flour used.)
1 tbs of finally grated cloves 
2 teaspoons vanilla powder or 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

Decoration
A handful  of  cloves
Powdered sugar (optional)

Mix the sugar, butter and flour into a smooth dough. 300g of flour (about 3 cups) should be enough, but depending on the kind of flour you use you may need more. Add as much flour as you need until the dough is firm enough to shape.

Grind the cloves into a rough powder.

Sprinkle the powder on the dough, add the vanilla and work in.

Divide the dough into small lumps.

Take a bit of dough and roll it into balls. Press it gently between the hollows of your palms to make a slightly convex shape: Press a clove in the centre of each ghraiba. Some people prefer to use slivered almonds even in clove ghraiba, but I think whole cloves are prettier. Being in the oven weakens their taste, and fills the kitchen with the aroma of cloves!

Bake in the over at 220°C degrees for about 10 minutes. Take them out of the oven when they are still pale or your buttery soft ghraiba will harden and become indistinguishable form sugar cookies. It is usual to cover Ghraiba in powdered sugar, which is best done when the cookies get cold. They are sweet enough as they are though.

Date Filled Semolina Cookies: Magroodh مقروض ليبي

Magroodh (or Magroud) is the quintessential Libyan biscuit, and is an important part of every Eid. Makroot is the fried variant made in the rest of North Africa, while the Libyan Magroud is baked. Magroodh is made mainly from semolia and has a soft crumbly texture, and the filling combines sesame, cinnamon, nutmeg and dates. The final step of coating the magroud with orange-blossom infused syrup keeps them moist and adds another layer of flavor. Traditionally olive oil is used instead of corn oil, and warm natural honey is used in stead of syrup

Ingredients:

3 cups semolina

1 cup flour

1 cup corn oil

11/2 tsp baking powder

1 tablespoon orange blossom water or rose water 
 added to about 1/2  litre warm water to knead the dough

Filling:

750g date paste

2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoons grated nutmeg
1 tablespoon oil

1/2 cup sesame seeds (lightly roasted)

Syrup:
4 cup boilling water

3 cups Sugar

1tbsp lemon juice
1 lemon slice
2 tbsp orange blossom water
Decoration:
1/2 cup sesame seeds (lightly roasted)

Prepare the syrup by simmering all the ingredients on moderate heat for approx. 30 min until they reaches a syrupy consistency.. Add orange blossom and set aside to cool. For a richer taste, add 1 tablespoons of honey while the syrup is still warm. Set aside.

Mix the semolina, flour, baking powder.

Add the oil and mix. Cover and leave it to rest for at least one hour

Cut the date paste into small pieces and knead. Add some olive oil if the paste is not soft enough to be kneaded. Add cinnamon, grated nutmeg, sesame and work them in.

Roll out the sesame date paste with your palm into 4 long ropes. 

Divide the dough into 4 portions, take one portion of the dough and add the orange blossom flavoured  warm water a little at a time. Knead well until the dough becomes smooth and easy to shape. The dough will also   become lighter in colour

  Form the dough into a furrow shape

Place on of the rolls in the bed.

Pinch closed and smoothen the dough over the date roll.

Cut the roll into small pieces, at a slight angle, forming a diamond shape.

Decorate.

Place in a preheated oven at 220°C until golden. It  takes about 12 minutes.

Pour the cold sugar syrup over the  warm magroudh.

Turn the magroodh every 15 minutes, leaving it to soak in the syrup from the front, back and on each side. Remove from the syrup and put in sieve to remove the excess syrup, sprinkle with pan-roasted sesame seeds, and leave to rest (preferably overnight) before serving.

 Serve with tea or Arabic coffee