MAAMOUL MAD - Lebanese Date Squares

Lebanese Date Squares made with Semolina flour

Ingredients:

For the dough:
5 cups semolina or 1000 g (600 gm coarse semolina 400 gm fine semolina)
200 gm melted butter
200 gm melted ghee ( you can use 400 gm clarified butter instead of the 2)
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg .+ 1 tsp of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground mahleb (from Middle Eastern Stores)
1 teaspoon instant dried yeast
¼ cup rose water + ¼ cup blossom water or 60 ml

for the date filling:

500gm date, pitted and chopped
¼ cup butter or 50 g
1 tsp of cinnamon
¾ cup walnuts or 75 g, toasted, crushed (optional)
¼ cup of sesame seeds

Syrup: 3 cups sugar + 1 1/2 cup water and squeeze of lemon juice. Cook and let it cool

For the Pistachio Filling or you can use walnuts:

3 cups pistachio nuts or 450 g, roughly chopped
1/2 tin NESTLÉ® Sweetened Condensed Milk or 1/2 cup of sugar
2 tablespoons rose water
2 tablespoons blossom water

Preparation:

In a bowl, combine grain semolina, fine semolina, ghee, sugar, mahleb, yeast, rose water and blossom water. Mix the ingredients well then cover and set aside for at least 1 hour.

Mix pistachios, NESTLÉ® Sweetened Condensed Milk , rose water and blossom water until all ingredients are well combined. Cover mixture and set aside.
Press ½ quantity of the maamoul dough over 28cm round non-stick oven tray to flatten evenly all over the tray.
Pour pistachio mixture over the maamoul dough in the tray with equally level then press it gently and set aside.
Place the remaining ½ of the maamoul dough between two sheets of greaseproof paper, then gently roll it between the papers using a rolling pin to reach the size of the tray. Remove the top paper and turn the dough carefully over the pistachio mixture and press gently. (Remove exceeding dough from the sides).
Bake in a preheated oven at 200°C for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown color, add the cool syrup and set aside to cool. Cut into squares and serve.

For preparing the date stuffing

In a pot over medium low heat add the dates and the butter and spices, and cook to soften and become tender, if you cook enough you don’t need to mash the date.
Mix in the walnuts and place in fridge for ½ hour.

prepare the dough same as the pistachios, bake till golden brown, remove and pour 1 cup of so of syrup , let it cool before you cut into squares.

Plate of Maamoul hand made shaped into eggshell for pistachio stuffing, and fingers for date stuffing and rounds for walnuts almond stuffing, the square on the far end is date squares with a special mold.