Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 3 cups cake flour (TFD change, originally was AP flour)
- 1 cup Emmer flour (TFD change to bring it closer to qullupu, originally was AP flour)
- 1 Tbsp. yeast
- 1/2 cup clarified butter
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (TFD recommends white sesame oil as the appropriate oil to be Sumerian)
- 1 1/4 cup warm bottled water combined with a large pinch of crushed saffron (Saffron is an optional TFD addition, to bring it closer to Sumerian, omit for Iraqi)
- 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal kosher salt
- 1 tsp. freshly-ground cardamom seeds
- 1/2 tsp. freshly-ground wild cumin seeds (TFD addition to bring these cookies closer to the original qullupu)
- 1 tsp. fennel pollen (TFD change, original was ground fennel seeds)
- 1 tsp. freshly-ground nigella seeds (they are normally left whole, but I prefer their stronger flavor when ground)
- ***
- Date and Walnut filling:
- 6 oz. very finely-chopped dates (preferably deglet noor dates or madjool)
- 2 oz. walnuts, powdered
- 1/4 stick butter
- 3 Tbsp. sugar
- 1 Tbsp. freshly-ground cardamom
- 1 Tbsp. finely-crushed dried rose petals (TFD highly optional addition, omit for original)
- ***
- Egg Wash – beat one egg with 1 Tbsp. water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Oil baking pans and set aside.
- In a small bowl, put the yeast in warm water and cover to rise. Combine flours, nigella seeds, cardamom, cumin, fennel pollen, salt, oil and butter, and rub it with your hands.
- Add yeast and water. Knead the dough and add more water if needed. It depends on the flour absorbtion of liquids. Place in a large oiled bowl, cover, and let rise in a warm place for an hour.
- For the Date Filling: Cook dates with ¼ stick of butter until very soft. Add all other filling ingredients. Let the mixture cool before using. Cover a cutting board with plastic wrap, and spread the dates on the board using a rolling pin to make a thin sheet.
- Roll out a piece of dough on a cutting board. Cover the top with a very thin layer of date mixture. Roll the dough like a jelly roll. Cut 1-inch wide, and arrange in the pan. Brush top with egg wash, and bake for 30 minutes. Put the cookies on cooling rack. Store them in a cookie container.
