Maamoul With Dates

date maamoul stacked in a plate with one cut in half

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This maamoul with dates recipe is for traditional Lebanese semolina shortbread cookies, shaped with distinctive patterns and filled with soft, gently spiced date paste.

Prep Time8 15

Cook Time19

Resting1

Total Time9 34

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: Lebanese, Middle Eastern

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings: cookies

Calories: 206kcal

Author: Janelle Hama

Ingredients

Dough

1 cup Coarse semolina
¼ cup Fine semolina
½ cup Butter Softened. I used dairy free. (See note 1 below)
⅛ cup White sugar
¼ teaspoon Baking powder
½ teaspoon Mahlab optional but highly recommended
½ teaspoon Orange blossom water
½ teaspoon Rose water
1 tablespoon Milk I used almond milk

Filling

250 grams Dates pitted and room temperature
1 tablespoon Butter I used dairy free
¾ teaspoon White sugar
1 pinch Salt

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

In a large bowl, combine the coarse semolina, fine semolina, sugar, baking powder, and mahlab.
1 cup Coarse semolina, ¼ cup Fine semolina, ⅛ cup White sugar, ¼ teaspoon Baking powder, ½ teaspoon Mahlab
Add the softened butter, orange blossom water, rose water, and milk. Using your hands, knead until fully combined and the dough resembles claggy sand that holds together when pressed.
Form into a ball, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Remove from the fridge 15 minutes before shaping.
½ cup Butter, ½ teaspoon Orange blossom water, ½ teaspoon Rose water, 1 tablespoon Milk
In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the dates, sugar, and salt and mash with a fork as the dates soften into a paste.
Transfer to a food processor and blend until smooth. Set aside to cool until easy to handle.
250 grams Dates, 1 tablespoon Butter, ¾ teaspoon White sugar, 1 pinch Salt
Divide the date paste into 10 equal balls, using lightly wet hands if needed.
Divide the dough into 10 equal balls, using floured hands.
Flatten one dough ball into a disk in your floured palm. Place a date ball in the center and fully encase it with the dough, rolling gently into a smooth ball.
Lightly flour the maamoul mold (see equipment section for sizing) and tap out any excess. If the dough ball has a visible seam, place the smooth side down into the mold. Press gently and evenly to imprint the pattern.
Flip the mold so the maamoul is facing down, tap to release the cookie and transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. See video for this step.
Repeat with remaining dough and filling.
Bake in the centre of a preheated fan-forced oven at 180°C / 356°F for 19 minutes, until just starting to hint golden.
Remove immediately and allow to cool completely at room temperature (1+ hour) before handling.

Video

Notes

Note 1 - Switching dairy-free butter brands may alter baking time. I recommend starting to check through the oven window for doneness around the 16-minute mark.

Date filling , roughly 25g each

Dough balls roughly 45g each.

US tablespoons and cups have been used in this recipe: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 15 ml; 1 cup equals 240 ml

Nutrition