Ma’moul – Festive Cookies for Easter
By: Habeeb Salloum/Arab America Contributing Writer
Easter was always an exciting time when growing up on our southern Saskatchewan homestead. We children could not wait for Mother to make her famous Easter baklawa. It was a special treat made only on the special holidays. The hand-made filo dough oozing with syrup with each crispy bite was in my mind that one winter when I knew that Christmas was approaching in a few weeks.
I still remember that Easter holiday when I asked my mother when she was going to start preparing for the baklawa.
“This year it’s going to be different. I’m going to make for Easter, this year, ma’moul, one of the cookies we used to make in Syria.”
My face must have dropped all the way to the ground. In disbelief I asked, “What? You’re not going to make baklawa?”
My mother smiled. “Don’t worry. You’ll see. You will love ma’moul as much as you love baklawa, or even more!”
I had my doubts, that is, until Easter day came around and the trays of ma’moul were on the table. They were so tasty that I couldn’t stop eating them. Each bite into the shortbread textured cookie filled with walnuts and sugar only increased my cravings for more. Growing up my mother used to make the ones with nuts only because walnuts were more readily available at the grocery store in Ponteix. Many years later, when I travelled all over the Arab world, I enjoyed other variations of this historic cookie which has been around since, most likely, the days of the Pharaohs when they were made round and served on special holidays, the cookies symbolizing the sun-god Aton (Aten). Even in ancient Babylonia, a similar type of cookie was baked as an offering to the goddess Ishtar on the New Year. Even earlier, it is said, the Canaanites prepared ma’moul each year in celebration of the return of the god Ba’al.
My mother’s ma’moul was a traditional Syrian recipe that she learned from her mother who was taught how to make them from my grandmother. Mother would spend a whole day making them, some of which she would give as gifts for those rare times we had visitors.
Centuries ago in Syria, before a holiday, in a type of communal effort, groups of women from the same family or neighbourhood would get together, and make the dough and filling, stuff the cookies and if living in the city send them off to the bakery to be cooked. My mother did not have that luxury of help, until my sisters were older, and, instead, would prepare her large batch of ma’moul days ahead of the holidays all by herself.
Ma’moul are traditional cookies stuffed with nuts or with dates and found throughout all the Arab world. They are especially made on both Christian and Muslim religious holidays, especially special occasions after fasting, Lent and Ramadan, and thus are also known as ‘ka’k al-‘eed’ (feast cookies). Some prepare ma’moul with a flour dough, others make them with semolina or farina. Sometimes, orange blossom water or rosewater flavour, the latter especially with pistachios, the stuffings, and some ma’moul use mahaleb, an aromatic spice, in their dough.
Ma’moul are formed with a special mould traditionally carved into wood. However, plastic versions with push levers are sometimes available in many Middle Eastern supermarkets. They suit their purpose but are not as sturdy and durable as the old-fashioned and authentic wooden mould.
The stuffed ball is lightly pressed into the mould and then the mould is flipped over against the edge of the countertop and placed on the baking tray. My mother did not have one in those early farming years. She improvised by spending the day forming the dough into balls and stuffing them with her delicious walnut filling. She would pat them closed and form them into a round cookie shape. Sometimes she used a spoon or fork to etch designs on them in a uniform artistic manner. I remember well the aroma from the hot kitchen as she baked them in contrast to the blustery cold of Saskatchewan’s early spring weather.
Nowadays, in the Arab world, ma’moul is available in the multitude of pastry shops in all towns and cities. Even in the larger urban centres of North America ma’moul is sold in Middle Eastern markets and pastry shops. This spares the effort of a seemingly all-day venture to prepare them. However, no one can deny that nothing beats the taste, flavour, and aroma of homemade ma’moul as the following recipe will provide.
Nut-stuffed Ma’moul
Makes 3 to 4 dozen cookies (depending on size of mold)
2 boxes farina (or cream of wheat) (28 oz. each)
1 1/2 pounds butter, melted and cooled to room
temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
2 cups milk, room temperature
1 1/2-pounds walnuts, ground
4 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
3 teaspoons orange blossom water
icing sugar for dusting
To make the dough, in a large mixing bowl, stir together the farina, the 1 1/2 pounds of the butter, 1 cup of the sugar, and milk, then stir well by hand until all ingredients are completely blended. Do not knead. Cover and let stand for 1 hour.
In a small mixing bowl, make the filling by mixing the walnuts and the remaining sugar. Stir in the 4 tablespoons of butter and orange blossom water.
Preheat oven to 400o.
When dough is ready, mix it again by hand until soft. Form walnut-size balls; then in the palm of one hand place one ball and with the forefinger of the other hand, press a hole. Expand the cavity by rotating and pressing the ball against the palm of your hand until you have a shell 1/4 inch thick. Place a heaping teaspoon of walnut stuffing in the cavity and close the shell. Lightly press into the ma’moul mold, flip mold over and tap on the edge of the countertop. Place molded cookie on an ungreased baking sheet. Continue with the rest of the balls.
Bake ma’moul for about 10 to 12 minutes or until bottoms are very lightly browned. Broil for 1 minute. Do not let the ma’moul brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Dust with icing sugar.
Ma’moul can be stored in air-tight containers and will last at best for one week at room temperature.
