Maamoul

Lebanese shortbread

by

Maamoul 

Note: I realized that with all of my grandmother’s recipes there is always leftover sweet stuff (icing, filling, etc). Feel free to use just one cup of pecans. Makes about a dozen cookies.

Read more about Lebanese cuisine in Louisiana in Caroline Gerdes' "From Cedar to Cypress."

Ingredients: 

1 cup cream of wheat 

2 cups flour 

1½ tbsp. sugar 

1 cup rendered butter 

¼ cup water or milk 

Powdered sugar  

For the filling: 

2 cups ground pecans

1 tbsp. butter, melted

½ cup sugar 

1 tsp. rose water 

(My family sometimes used vanilla

extract or whiskey.) 

Method: 

Make the filling: Combine ingredients. Set aside.

For the maamoul:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Combine cream of wheat, flour, sugar, and rendered butter. 

2. Add milk, slowly. The mixture should not be overworked or too wet. Knead well. 

3. Form dough into small patties, flatten into palm of hand. 

4. Fill patty with one tablespoon of filling and cover with another patty. Close around the edges. 

5. Bake until the bottom is light brown. Cool. 

To serve: Sprinkle with powdered sugar.