Date Cookies Eid Cookies Recipes

MAAMOUL (DATE FILLED COOKIES)

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F.

DATE COOKIES (EID COOKIES)

Steps:

• Mix flour, ground fenugreek, salt, granulated sugar and instant yeast in a large bowl.
• Add the clarified butter; mix with your hands until well incorporated.
• Heat the milk until warm; add gradually to flour mixture.
• Knead to form a soft dough.
• Cover with a damp cloth for 1/2 hour.
• Put the dates in a bowl; add nutmeg; knead with your hands.
• Take a small piece of dough; pat down onto work surface.
• Take a smaller piece of dates and roll it with your hands to form a small rope.
• Place the date rope in the middle of the piece of dough and enclose it with the dough and roll into a rope; make sure the date is entirely covered with dough.
• Shape your rope into an 'S' and place on a baking sheet.
• Repeat with the remainder of dough and date filling.
• Brush your 'S's with egg white; sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden in color.

KA'AK BI AJWA (DATE RING COOKIES) PALESTINIAN, MIDDLE EASTERN

Steps:

• Mix smeed, flour, salt, sugar, and butter/oil in a large pan. Cover and leave for ten hours, or overnight.
• Dissolve the yeast in 2 tablespoons water and a dash of sugar. When it rises, add to smeed mixture.
• Dissolve mahlab and miska in cold water. Add to smeed mixture.
• Combine warm water and milk. Pour gradually while mixing all the ingredients together. (Do not knead, just stir the mixture to have a moist crust rather than a dough).
• Mix dates, nutmeg, cinnamon, and butter in a pan and warm to soften dates. Knead well.
• Roll dates in 1/3 inch thick balls. Cut a piece of dough, one at a time, the size of a walnut. Spread lengthwise, 4" by 1". Fill with date ball and roll, sealing the sides together to form a ring.
• Pinch the rings with a cookie tweezer to decorate (so powder sugar will stick to it). Place on baking sheets and bake at 400 degrees in a preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until light gold. (Place baking sheet on top rack).
• *NOTE* This is one way to do it, but I also take a round piece of dough, slightly bigger than the date ball, and push my thumb in it, then place the date ball inside and spread the dough around the date ball completely covering it. Then using a ma'amool cookie mold I place the dough with the date inside in the mold and tap the mold upside down so the finished cookie will fall out. Baking instructions are the same for either variation!
• When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar. When completely cool, freeze or store in tightly covered jars.