Ma’amoul

Making The Crust:

1. Prepare the semolina mixture – In a bowl, combine the semolina with the melted butter/ghee and Mazola Vegetable Oil (start with 1/4 cup of Mazola Vegetable Oil along with the butter and ghee). It is important that the ghee or butter is hot and fully melted, not just softened.
2. Incorporate the fat. Rub the butter and Mazola Vegetable Oil into the semolina until fully absorbed. The mixture should resemble wet sand.
3. Let it rest – Cover the bowl and leave it overnight to allow the semolina granules to swell and soften.
4. The next day, mix in the flour, mastic, mahlab, powdered milk, anise, and baking powder.
5. Dissolve the yeast in water along with 1 teaspoon of sugar. Let it sit until it foams and bubbles.
6. Add the yeast mixture to the semolina mixture.
7. Sweeten the dough – Dissolve ½ cup of sugar in orange blossom and rose water, then add it to the semolina mixture.
8. Take a small lump of dough, crumble it between your fingers, and repeat.
9. The dough will first form clumps, then start coming together. You are not aiming for a smooth dough ball, just a mixture that holds together and is homogeneous.
10. Avoid overmixing – Do not mix too much, as this will develop gluten, making the ma’amoul tough.
11. Cover and let it rest for one hour.
12. Adjust texture if needed – Take a small portion of dough and try rolling it into a ball. If it crumbles, add ¼ cup of water and knead gently. Cover and let it rest for 10 minutes. If it is still crumbly, add the remaining ¼ cup of Mazola Vegetable Oil and knead very gently.

Instructions For Filling:

1. Orange blossom water, cardamom and cinnamon are added for flavor and are entirely optional
2. Taste the filling and adjust the sweetness and spices according to your taste, just remember that there is not sugar in the crust so the filling has to be on the extra sweet side
3. You can replace half of the sugar with 1/4 cup of simple syrup. Addition of the syrup keeps the filling from drying out while baking and makes it more flavorful

Making the Ma’amoul:

1. Take a walnut size piece of dough
2. Keep the rest of the dough covered or it will dry out
3. If you find that the dough is a little dry or it cracks when you try to form it, add 1/4 cup of Mazola Vegetable Oil and knead it lightly into the dough
4. Form a small cup of dough using your thumb to make a hole and pinching the sides thin. Stuff with desired filling so it comes 3/4 of the way up and close carefully, rolling smooth.

Baking Ma’amoul:

1. Bake ma’amoul on the middle rack of a preheated oven (230 C) till the edges are golden brown (5-12 minutes) and then place them under the broiler till the tops are golden brown (2-5 minutes)
2. Take the cookies out of the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet for 10- 15 minutes then move them to a cooling rack because they are prone to crumble if you move them when they are still hot