Crisp Moroccan Appetizer Rolls Recipes

MOROCCAN PHYLLO ROLLS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425ºF (220ºC). Line a wide-rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Place bell peppers, zucchini, onion, fennel, apricots, and garlic on sheet, and toss with oil, ginger, cinnamon, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 35-45 minutes, tossing once or twice, until veggies are caramelized in some spots and softened.
• Remove from oven, toss in chickpeas or white beans and basil, and let cool slightly. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F (190ºC). Line a baking dish or sheet with parchment paper. Place a lightly dampened dish towel over phyllo sheets to keep moist while preparing rolls.
• Lightly brush top of one sheet with oil. Place another sheet (not brushed with oil) on top. Spread ¾-1 cup roasted veggie mixture (see note) down the center of top sheet, leaving 1-2-in (2½-5-cm) space from edges. Fold left side over filling and roll up, tucking in sides as you go. Brush with additional oil and place in lined baking dish or sheet.
• Repeat process until all phyllo and mixture are used; you will have 4-6 rolls (see note).
• Bake for 24-28 minutes, until golden brown. Serve warm, drizzled with recipe #427818, and garnished with almonds.
• ***Use 8 sheets to make generously stuffed rolls or 12 sheets for smaller ones. If the roll is quite full, it may tear while baking. This of course won't ruin them, but will affect the presentation (if that's important to you).
• ***As appetizers: Make smaller rolls or bite-sized phyllo triangles. For the latter, brush one sheet with oil. Then, with a sharp knife, cut 4 strips lengthwise down length of sheet. Place a small spoonful of filling at the base of one strip. Then, fold that corner over to form a triangle, and continue to fold back and forth until you reach the top (like folding a flag). Repeat process until you have used up all the filling. Bake at 375ºF (190ºC) for 15-20 minutes, until golden. Serve with recipe #427818 as a dip.

MOROCCAN-STYLE CHICKEN PHYLLO ROLLS

Steps:

• Make filling:
• Cook onion in oil along with salt, cumin, ginger, turmeric, pepper, and coriander in a 3-quart heavy saucepan over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken, broth, water, and cinnamon stick and simmer, covered, turning chicken over once, until meat is very tender, about 45 minutes total. Transfer chicken with tongs to a bowl, reserving cooking liquid.
• When cool enough to handle, shred chicken, discarding skin and bones, and transfer to a large bowl. Transfer cooking liquid to a 2-cup glass measure (do not clean saucepan) and let stand 1 minute, then skim off fat and discard cinnamon stick. Return liquid to saucepan and simmer over moderately high heat, uncovered, until reduced to about 1/4 cup (liquid will look like a glaze in bottom of pan), about 8 minutes, then stir into shredded chicken along with almonds.
• Reserve 2 tablespoons beaten egg in a cup for egg wash. Lightly season remaining egg with salt and pepper, then cook in 1/2 tablespoon butter in an 8- to 10-inch nonstick skillet over moderately high heat, stirring, until just set but still slightly soft. Stir scrambled egg into filling.
• Make rolls:
• Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 450°F.
• Put 1 phyllo sheet on a work surface, keeping remaining phyllo covered with overlapping sheets of plastic wrap and a damp kitchen towel, and brush generously with some melted butter. Evenly sift 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon over buttered phyllo using a fine-mesh sieve, then top with another phyllo sheet and generously brush with butter.
• Halve buttered phyllo stack crosswise, then arrange 1 half with a long side nearest you. Spread 1/4 cup chicken filling in a narrow strip along edge nearest you, then roll up filling tightly in phyllo, leaving ends open. Transfer roll, seam side down, to a cutting board set inside a baking pan (to help contain mustard seeds when sprinkling). Make another roll with remaining half stack. Make 6 more rolls in same manner, transferring to cutting board.
• Lightly brush top of rolls with egg wash and immediately sprinkle with mustard seeds, pressing lightly on seeds to help adhere. Cut each roll crosswise into 4 pieces and arrange pieces 1 inch apart on 2 baking sheets. Bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until phyllo is golden brown, about 12 minutes total.
• Transfer rolls to a rack to cool slightly.

KRACHEL- MOROCCAN SWEET ROLLS WITH ANISE AND SESAME

Steps:

• Dissolve the yeast in a little of the warm milk and set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, sugar, salt and anise seeds. Add the eggs, the butter, the oil, the orange flower water, the yeast and the rest of the milk. Mix to form a very soft, sticky dough.
• If you find the dough is too sticky to handle, add the smallest amount of flour necessary to be able to knead the dough.
• Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface (or in a stand mixer with a dough hook) for about 10 minutes, or until very smooth. (It's desirable to have the dough somewhat sticky; you'll find that it becomes much easier to handle after its first rising.).
• Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn the dough over once to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with a towel and leave the dough to rise until doubled - usually this takes about one to one-and-a-half hours, but leave the dough to rise longer if necessary.
• After the dough has risen, divide it into 12 to 15 smooth, evenly shaped balls. Place the balls of dough two inches apart on an oiled baking sheet, and slightly flatten the tops of the dough.
• Cover the baking sheet with a towel and leave the dough to rise another hour or longer, or until the rolls are very light and puffy.
• Preheat an oven to 450° F (230° C). Brush the tops and sides of the rolls with the egg wash and sprinkle the rolls with sesame seeds.
• Bake the krachel for about 20 minutes, or until rich golden brown. Transfer the rolls to a rack to cool.
• TIPS & STORAGE:.
• Be sure that the milk is warm to the touch but not hot. Hot liquids will kill yeast, while cool liquids will not activate it.
• Be patient with the initial rising time; the dough is quite rich and may take awhile to rise properly.
• Rotating the tray from front to back halfway through baking will help ensure even browning.
• If the rolls aren't well-browned after 20 minutes of baking, place them under a broiler for a minute. Watch the rolls carefully or they'll burn!
• Krachel store well in plastic storage bags in the freezer. They can be warmed in the microwave directly from the freezer without drying out. The trick is to avoid making the rolls too hot.
• If reheating krachel in an oven, enclose the rolls in foil to keep them from becoming hard and dry.
• LIGHTER DOUGH:.
• To make a lighter, less-rich sweet dough for the krachel, eliminate the vegetable oil and reduce the butter to 5 tablespoons. Adjust the amount of liquid if necessary to form a soft, slightly sticky dough.