SUNDAY DESSERT #90: Ma'amoul
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Egypt 🇪🇬 (But they are the most popular cookie throughout the Levant region and all Middle Eastern countries.)
DIFFICULTY LEVEL: Intermediate
INSPIRATION: This beautiful, nut-filled cookie seems very autumnal to me! Although, ironically, these are traditionally made in the spring for Eid al-Fitr or Easter, depending if you're Muslim or Christian.
RECEPTION/COMMENTARY: These shortbread-like cookies are stuffed with a paste filling of either figs, dates, walnuts, or pistachios. It's not surprising, then, why they call this ma'amoul because it literally translates to "filled" in the Arabic language. However, unlike regular shortbread, these middle eastern variants are made with semolina flour, yeast, and spices. They are then pressed into a mold to create beautiful and elegant designs.
If you've followed my desserts for a while, then you've possibly already figured out which filling I chose. 😂 Pistachio will always be my winner! Another thing you probably know is my absolute hatred for rose water. Almost every recipe for ma'amoul calls for either orange blossom or rose water as a flavoring for that authentic, middle-eastern taste. I hope no one is offended that I swapped that sucker out for almond extract instead. Plus, I think almond pairs well nicely with pistachio...wouldn't you agree?!
This was kind of a backwards rating process. I gave it a 6/10 because although the taste of the filling was spectacular in terms of sweet nuttiness, the semolina in the surrounding dough made the texture of the cookie very dry and grainy. Because my husband abhors dry desserts, I thought he would give this a much lower rating. Surprisingly, he gave it an 8/10 because he enjoyed the unique taste and texture that we Americans don't normally associate with cookies. Fair enough, though still shocking.
WOULD I MAKE IT AGAIN? I wouldn't. And my husband said that even though he liked it, he'd rather have a mooncake if I was to go through the trouble of individually molding each cookie.
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