Gateau de Semoule a l'Orange ( Semolina Cake with Orange)

   Ages ago in Brussels, a family friend use to make Gateau de Semoule a l’Orange. It tasted nice. As much as my sister & sister in law tried to get the recipe, she always used to find excuses not to give it to us...Well, after several trials, this recipe below taste much nicer :)
This is for you Ladies!

Ingredients:

1 Orange Peel
3/4 cup Semolina
3 cups Milk
2 Eggs
1 tablespoon Butter
4 tablespoon Sugar
few drops of Vanilla


  Rinse the orange and grate the peel finely. Pour milk in a saucepan and add the orange peel. Gently bring to a boil. 

  As soon as it starts boiling, lower the heat down, to a very low temp; slowly pour the semolina while continuously stirring. Let it cook for 5 minutes. Add the sugar and butter. Remove it from heat, add the beaten egg yolks with vanilla and mix very vigorously. 

  Pour the mix in the mould, level the mix surface, cover with a cling film and let cool in the fridge for 1-2 hr.
 
  
  

  To serve, unmould the dessert into a serving plate and decorate with slices of orange or if you have a sweet tooth poor over some sirop like Clementine Sirop or some honey....... Bon Appetit!!

Kaak Me'me' ( Me'me''s Cookies)

 These cookies are not too sweet.........perfect with a cup of coffee or tea... good anytime of the day!

Ingredients:

  

500g Flour

500g Ferkha ( Fine Semolina)

400 g Butter

400g Sugar

250 ml Milk

1 Tbsp instant dried Yeast (= 30 g fresh yeast)

1 tsp Mahlab

1 tsp Miskeh (Mastic pound into powder with a bit of sugar)

1 tsp Ground Aniseed 

1 tsp Ground Nutmeg

1 tsp Ground Cloves

 Mix all ingredients together to make it into a soft dough. Cover with towel. Let it rest for ½hr- 1hr. Preheat oven to a gaz mark 6 or 400F. Roll into a long rope up to 1cm thick and cut it into pieces about 8cm long, join the edges into a circle shape or cut them into pieces around 6cm long and leave them straight. Place on greased or parchment paper lined baking tray. Bake in medium hot oven for 10-15 min or until cookies are golden.

Krass Bil Samneh ( Butter Biscuit- no sugar)

 Traditionally, Krass Bil Samneh is eaten during Easter and especially on Easter day for breakfast with coloured boiled eggs. I like it with cheese and my favourite is eating it with dark chocolates! if you dont like dark chocolate , you can substitute it for milk chocolate!!

Ingredients:

700g Ferkha (Fine Semolina)
300g Flour

300g Butter

1 tsp dried Yeast  (I use 1 sachet of fast action Yeast) = 15g fresh yeast

1 Tbsp Mahlab
1 tsp Miskeh / Mastic  (pound into powder with a bit of sugar)

Salt

Water (as much needed)

Mix all ingredients together till it becomes a soft dough. Take a handfull of the dough and roll it into a big round circle of approx 15 cm diameter. Poke them in the middle with fork, circle or any other shape. Twist the edges or leave them flat, make the design your own :) The poking is to avoid the biscuits rising. Cover with a kitchen towel and leave them to rest for 2hrs. Then cook in medium hot oven gas mark 6 (200C=400F) for about 20 mins or once you feel the biscuit is done.