Ma'amoul — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

Buttery, crumbly semolina cookies filled with spiced date paste or walnuts, pressed into ornate wooden molds. These delicate cookies are the pride of Palestinian Eid celebrations.

Ingredients

2 cups fine semolina
1 cup coarse semolina
200g butter, melted
2 tbsp orange blossom water
2 tbsp rose water
1/4 cup milk
For date filling: 300g date paste, 1 tbsp butter, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, pinch nutmeg
For walnut filling: 1 cup walnuts chopped, 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp rose water
Powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions

1 Mix both semolinas with melted butter, orange blossom water, and rose water. Cover and rest overnight or at least 4 hours.
2 Prepare date filling by warming date paste with butter, cinnamon, and nutmeg until pliable. Form into small balls.
3 Mix walnut filling ingredients together for the nut-filled version. Form into small balls.
4 Add milk to the semolina dough gradually, kneading gently until it holds together without cracking. Do not overwork.
5 Take a walnut-sized piece of dough, form a cup, place filling inside, seal, and press into a ma'amoul mold. Tap out gently.
6 Bake at 170C for 15-18 minutes until the cookies are pale golden on the bottom (they should not brown on top). Cool and dust with powdered sugar.

Did You Know?

Experienced Palestinian bakers can identify whether ma'amoul is filled with dates or walnuts by the mold pattern — different designs signal different fillings.