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.

Tein Matboukh ( Fig Jam)

This is one of my Dad's recipes, he used to make Tein Matboukh every year, end of summer, in a massive saucepan and he stirred them with a wooden spoon made specially that looks like a flat baseball bat! 

Ingredients:

1 kg Dried Fig

1 ltr Water

1 ½ cup Sugar

2 tsp Aniseed powder

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

Roasted Sesame Seeds

    Cut the fig into small chunks. Put them in saucepan with water, sugar and aniseed. Place saucepan on a high heat till water starts boiling. Lower the heat to the minimum & let it cook till most of the water evaporated & the figs are soft & tender. Add grounded miskeh/ mastic. Stir the mixture until all the water has evaporated & the mixture is sticking together.

Put it in containers and sprinkle the top with roasted sesame seed.

It is best eaten with walnut on top of the sesame seeds with or without bread.
Yummy!!

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.



Chouring

This sweet bread is delicious for breakfast, with coffee or a snack. We used to have it on New Year’s Day. Mum used to hide a coin inside the braid before baking it. On that morning, Mum cut the braid into slices & we have to pick one slice each. The person who got the slice with the coin was destined to have a good & prosperous year.

Ingredients:

3 cups Flour

½ cup Milk

¾ cup Sugar
1/3 cup Butter

2 Eggs

1 tsp dry Yeast( or 15g fresh Yeast)

1 tsp Miskeh / Mastic (pound the mastic into powder)

1 tsp Mahlab/ Mahleb


   Topping:
1 beaten egg
Sugar

Sesame Seeds

Habet Barakeh/ Black Sesame Seeds (optional)

Mix flour, milk, sugar, eggs, yeast, mastic & mahlab together till the dough is soft. Cover the bowl. Leave dough to rest for 2-3 hours in warm place. Punch down the dough and divide it into 2 or 3 portions ( for smaller braids) to create braids. Each portion, divided into 3 equal parts & roll each into ropes about 30cm long. Braid the 3 ropes to form a loaf. Now it is the time to insert a coin!

You can also make other shapes, roll the ropes into spiral like snail, or anything of your choice. Place the braid on a greased or parchement paper lined baking tray. Cover them, and allow rising in a warm place for 1hr. Preheat oven to gas mark 5 or 350F. Brush with beaten egg, sprinkle with sugar,  sesame seeds & habet barakeh. Bake in oven on medium heat for 20-30 min or until it is golden. Sahtein!