Date Filled Cookies Maamoul

Maamoul (Date Filled Cookies)
Maamoul are buttery date filled middle eastern cookies that will melt
in your mouth and are utterly scrumptious. Naturally sweetened with
dates these have minimal added sugar. They are popular at Eid,
Christmas and other holidays.
Prep Time45 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Total Time1 hr
Print 
Course :Dessert
Cuisine :Middle Eastern
Servings: 32 Cookies
Calories: 104kcal
Author: Roxana Begum
 
Ingredients Dough
•	 ½ cup ghee or butter, grass fed 
•	 ¼ cup light olive oil or butter/ghee
•	 2 ½ cups all purpose flour (may use half whole wheat pastry flour)
•	 2 tablespoons sugar
•	 2 tablespoons rose water or orange flower water
•	 3 tablespoons milk (start with 2 and add as needed)
Date filling
•	 ⅔ lb dates medjool, soft, pitted, chopped (or ready made date
paste)
Dusting (optional)
•	 confectioner\'s sugar
Instructions
1.	Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Preparation of the dough
1.	Melt the butter or ghee. Add oil and then mix in the sugar.
2.	In a large mixing bowl, combine the ghee/sugar mixture with flour,
working them together with your fingers.
Tip: Use odorless oil or only butter or ghee. Add as much flour as the
butter/oil mixture will absorb and that usually varies from 2 ¼ to 2 ½
cups
3.	Then add the rose water and mix it in. Next add the milk, one
tablespoon at a time. Then knead it all into a pliable dough.
4.	When you add the milk, sometimes it might look like there is too
much milk and the dough is sticky. But when you keep mixing it in, the
milk gets absorbed.
5.	Let the dough rest for a 30 minutes. Then roll out 32 portions of
the dough into smooth balls. I find this easier because all my cookies
more or less turn out the same size.
Preparation of the date filling
1.	Process the chopped medjool dates in a food processor into a smooth
mass. If not using soft medjool dates, check the notes section.
2.	Divide the date mass into 32 portions and roll them into smooth
balls. Use oil or safe food prep gloves if needed, as the date mass
can be sticky.
Shaping of the date filled cookies
1.	Take a dough ball and flatten it. Hold it in the center of your
palm and cup it. Place a date ball in the center. Bring the edges of
the dough together. Pinch the dough to seal well and then flatten it
out. Press it into a disc.Tip: Make sure to not use too much filling,
or the cookies will crack.
2.	Use a nut pick or fork to create interesting patterns. Or press the
date filled cookie dough into a traditional maamoul mold and gently
press to get the pattern on the cookie.
3.	Invert and tap the front edge of the mold onto a hard surface like
a kitchen counter, and hold your palm under the mold to get the cookie
that is released from the mold.
Baking the Maamoul cookies
1.	Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Place the Maamoul cookies, smooth side
up (for hand shaped cookies) or the patterned side (for cookies made
with the mold), on a large baking sheet.
2.	Make sure to space them one to two inches apart. Bake for 15 to 20
minutes. Do not let the cookies over bake or turn too brown.
3.	Well baked cookies will appear dry on the surface unlike the moist
look of raw dough. Also, they will have a light tan.
4.	Cool the well-baked Maamoul completely on a wire rack. Using a
sieve dust some confectioner\'s sugar or a combination of the sugar
with some almond meal. Store the Maamoul cookies in an airtight
container.
Notes
1.	Fresh Dates: 
1.	If using dates that are not very soft, then place the chopped dates
and add some water in a saucepan (start with 2 tablespoons water and
add as needed). Dry dates may require more water.
2.	Heat it at medium high and when the water bubbles, lower the heat
and simmer. The dates should cooked down to a smooth and solid mass.
Turn off the heat and allow to cool.
2.	Ready Made Date Paste: 
1.	You can use one packet of pressed dates (no more than 13 oz)
available online or middle-eastern stores. Do make sure to look for
any pits. I have always found a small fragment of a pit in the ready
made date paste. And it can be dangerous if left in the filling.
2.	The date paste can be a bit sticky to work with. Application of
some oil to the palms or using safe food prep gloves may help while
shaping the date paste.
3.	Ghee or Butter: 
1.	Traditionally butter or ghee is used for these cookies. 
2.	I prefer using ghee for making these mamoul as it imparts a nice
nutty flavor. Ghee is quite easy to make from butter - check it out in
the recipe notes for these Nan-e Nokhodchi cookies.
4.	Healthier Substitution: 
1.	Some oil substitution works great with no impact on taste. You may
use any odorless healthy oil for the recipe.
2.	You can substitute half the flour with whole wheat pasty flour with
absolutely no difference in taste.
 
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 104kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein:
1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 1mg |
Potassium: 78mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 15IU | Calcium:
9mg | Iron: 0.5mg