Skip to main content
LoginSign Up
Date-Stuffed Semolina Cookies (Ma'amoul)

Date-Stuffed Semolina Cookies (Ma'amoul)

  • Makes
    36 cookies
  • Cook Time
    1 hour
  • Active time plus cooling
    30 minutes active, plus cooling
  • Rating

A combination of semolina and all-purpose flours gave the shortbread crust a rich, crumbly texture and complex flavor. Chilled butter prevented the dough from getting overly sticky, but if your kitchen is particularly warm and the dough is soft and shiny after mixing, refrigerate it for 30 minutes before proceeding. Covering the dough with plastic while making the filling and rolling it out between sheets of kitchen parchment further prevent the dough from drying out. If the dough begins to crack while shaping the cookies, gently pinch the cracks back together. You can substitute pistachios for the walnuts, but the filling will take an extra minute or so to come together into a paste. While rose water is traditional, we found a good substitution: 2 teaspoons each of orange juice and orange zest, plus 1/4 teaspoon almond extract. These cookies keep for up to three days in an airtight container at room temperature.

Tip

Don’t use deglet dates. Soft, plump medjool dates were essential to producing the proper consistency of the paste, and they made for a moister, more flavorful filling.

Ingredients
  • For the dough:
  • 172

    grams (1 cup) semolina flour

  • 142

    grams (1 cup) all-purpose flour

  • 66

    grams (⅓ cup) white sugar

  • ¼

    teaspoon table salt

  • 10

    tablespoons (1¼ sticks) salted butter, cut into 10 pieces and chilled

  • 2

    tablespoons plain whole-milk yogurt

  • 2

    teaspoons rose water

  • 1

    teaspoon vanilla extract

  • Powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)

  • For the filling:
  • 5

    ounces (1 cup) medjool dates, pitted

  • 4

    ounces (1 cup) walnut pieces, lightly toasted and cooled

  • 1

    tablespoon honey

  • 2

    teaspoons grated orange zest

  • ½

    teaspoon ground cardamom

  • ⅛

    teaspoon table salt

Step 1

Heat the oven to 325ºF with racks in the upper- and lower-middle positions. Line 2 baking sheets with kitchen parchment.

Step 2

For the dough, in a food processor combine both flours, the white sugar and salt. Process until combined, about 5 seconds.

Add the butter and continue to process until the butter is completely incorporated, 15 to 20 seconds. Add the yogurt, rose water and vanilla, then process until the dough comes together, about 1 minute.

Transfer to the counter and knead until the dough is smooth, then cover with plastic wrap and set aside.

Step 3

For the filling,in the food processor, combine all filling ingredients and process until a paste forms, 45 to 60 seconds.

Step 4

To assemble the cookies, set the dough between 2 sheets of kitchen parchment and roll into a 12-by-9-inch rectangle, cutting and patching the dough together as needed. Cut the dough into thirds lengthwise to form three 12-by-3-inch strips.

Divide the filling into thirds and roll each third into a 12-inch rope. Place one rope down the middle of each strip of dough, then wrap the dough completely around the filling.

Pinch the seam to seal. Place each roll seam side down and cut each crosswise each 12 rounds, gently reshaping if necessary. Evenly space the cookies seam side down on the prepared baking sheets.

Step 5

Bake until the bottoms are golden but the tops are still pale, 25 to 30 minutes, switching and rotating the sheets halfway through.

Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes.

Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.