Month: February 2020

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๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ฟ Algerian Glazed Bracelet Cookies – ูƒุนูŠูƒุนุงุช (Kโ€™EK- AT)

K3ik3at
The Algerian glazed bracelets are called ูƒุนูŠูƒุนุงุช in Arabic. The pronounciation of these cookies in English or French language is a little hard, as few Arabic letters are hard to pronounce so people came up with the word K3ik3at ( English Kโ€™EK- AT) for the pronunciation.

These are fancy cookies made with the same dough as Arayeche and Tcharek Mseker ( well known cookies in Algeria).

The shape and decoration is different. They are bracelets filled with almond paste and glazed with icing. The icing can be royal icing, powdered sugar icing or other.

These traditional cookies are prepared for special occasions in Algeria such as religious celebrations, engagements and weddings. They are served for tea or coffee.

Kโ€™EK- AT are pleasant to the eyes and melt in mouth.
Roll out the dough into thin sheet.
Trim the sheet of dough into a rectangle, using a pizza wheel.
Place a log of filling at one edge of the rectangle of dough.
Roll out the dough over the filling into a thin cylinder.
Seal the edges of the cylinder to form a circle and prick the bracelet formed from the bottom with a toothpick.

Bake in a 350ยฐF preheated oven for about 15 to 20 minutes and let cool completely.

Dip the top of the cookies in the powdered sugar glaze, then flip it over and place it on a cooling rack. The cooling rack should be placed on a large tray to catch the dripping glaze.

Wait for about 5 minutes then add sugar glaze dots or strips ( make sure you put some of the glaze in a squeeze bottle with a small opening tip.
Let them dry completely.

Dust the cookies with the edible dust to get that glossy finish and place a decorative flower on each cookie( optional).
Enjoy the Kโ€™EK- AT with tea or coffee.

Note that I had excess almond filling that I have used for another recipe. Please use 1/2 the ingredients for the filling to avoid having left over.
These are the Algerian bracelet cookies made the same way as the one showed above but some were glazed with chocolate ganache and some were dipped in sugar syrup then coated with powdered sugar.
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๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ฟ Algerian Glazed Bracelet Cookies – ูƒุนูŠูƒุนุงุช (Kโ€™EK- AT)

Cuisine Algerian
Keyword K3ik3at
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 14
Author LDSโ€™s Mom

Ingredients

Dough

  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 cup orange blossom water
  • Water as needed
  • 1 tsp vanilla powder

Filling

  • 3 cups almond flour
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla powder
  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
  • 5 to 6 tbsp orange blossom water
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder (optional)

Glaze

  • Around 3 cups powdered sugar ( more or less)
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • Water
  • Food coloring of your choice

Garnish

  • Metallic food coloring or edible dust (color of your choice)
  • Decorative flower bouquet for cookies.

Instructions

  1. Sift the flour, vanilla, salt and powdered sugar.

  2. Add the butter and mix with your hands until the butter is well incorporated.

  3. Add orange blossom water and mix it well.

  4. Add water, one tablespoon at the time until the dough gets together and is soft. Make sure to not knead the dough.

  5. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let rest for at least 20 minutes on the counter.

  6. Prepare the filling by mixing the almond flour, sugar, vanilla powder, cinnamon and butter.

  7. Add orange blossom water, one tablespoon at the time until obtain a well gathered paste. Form thin logs and cover with plastic wrap.

  8. Get back to the dough and form small balls, the size of small tangerines.

  9. Cover the balls of dough with plastic wrap and roll out each ball individually into thin sheet.

  10. Trim the sheet of dough into a rectangle, using a pizza wheel.

  11. Place a log of filling at one edge of the rectangle of dough.

  12. Roll the dough over the filling into a thin cylinder.

  13. Seal the edges of the cylinder to form a circle and prick the bracelet formed from the bottom with a toothpick.

  14. Place in a baking sheet.

  15. Bake in a 350ยฐF preheated oven for about 15 to 20 minutes.

  16. Let cool completly.

  17. Prepare the glaze by mixing the powdered sugar, lemon and water. For the water add 1 tablespoon at the time until obtain a nice smooth thick pourable texture.

  18. Add food coloring of your choice and mix well.

  19. Dip the top of each cookie in the glaze, then flip it over and place it on a cooling rack placed on a large tray to catch the dripping glaze.

  20. Let dry completely for few hours.

  21. Use a knife to clean up the cookies from excess icing in the bottom and edges.

  22. Dust the cookies with the metallic food coloring or edible dust ( color of your choice), using a small brush. This will give the cookies a glossy finish.

  23. Place a decorative flower for cookies on each cookie on top or in the center hole. Make sure to cut a part of the stem first before placing it.

  24. Enjoy.

Recipe Notes

  • If the powdered sugar glaze is too runny, add powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add a small amount of water.
  • I use US cups for measurements in this recipe.
  • The total time in this recipe didnโ€™t include the doughโ€™s rest time and the time it took for the icing to dry.
  • I had excess almond filling that I have used for another recipe. Please use 1/2 the ingredients for the filling to avoid having left over.
  • If you choose to coat the bracelet cookies with powdered sugar, prepare sugar syrup. Mix 2 cups water with 1 cup granulated sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil then let simmer for 15 minutes. Add 1 tbsp orange blossom water in the last 2 minutes. Let cool before using it. Dip the bracelet cookies in syrup, drain and place them in SIFTED powdered sugar. Coat them well then sift more powdered sugar on top for better presentation.ย 
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๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ฟ Algerian Almond filled Cookies – Dziriettes

Dziriettes ( Arabic ุฏุฒูŠุฑูŠุงุช ) are almond filled cookies.
The name Dziriettes literally means โ€œfrom Algiersโ€ as Algiers is the place of origin of these cookies.
The dough of these cookies is shaped into thin discs, to which we place a ball of almond filling in the center.
The disc of dough is folded toward the ball of almond filling, and pinched all around with the help of a toothpick or just your fingers ( index and tumb).

These cookies have a variety of decorations. They are decorated with almonds, sugar pearls, or other.

After the cookies are baked, they are drenched in a light sugar syrup, and they are served with tea or coffee.

The traditional Dziriettes are hand pinched and the modern ones takes the form of the mold used ( mold for Dziriettes).
Dziriettes are time consuming to prepare but itโ€™s well worth the time.

These cookies are present in major celebrations in Algeria such as weddings, engagements and religious celebrations.
Hand pinched traditional Dziriettes.
Modern Dziriettes ( using Dziriettesโ€™ mold).
Roll out the dough into thin sheets, then pass the sheets of dough in the pasta machine to obtain the thinnest ones.
Use a round cookie cutter (of about 3 inches) to cut out the dough as shown in the picture above.
Place a ball of filling in the center of each disc of dough and gently flatten the filling with the palm of your hand.

With a kitchen brush, brush egg white on the disc of dough, around the ball of filling paste.
Use a toothpick to help shape the Dziriettes. Fold the disc of dough around the filling with the toothpick from the outside and form sort of small folds as shown in the picture above.

Pinch the small folds of dough with your thumb and index fingers all around the cookie dough and that forms the traditional Dziriettes.
You can use a mold to make the modern Dziriettes by simply placing the disc of dough inside the mold then adding the filling in the center.

Make incisions In the filling for the modern Dziriettes with a knife and decorate with a whole almond in the center.

Cover the Dziriettes and let rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
Bake in a 350ยฐF preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until golden.
Drench the baked Dziriette in a slightly warmed syrup.
For the syrup I have used my homemade sugar syrup https://www.myexcellentdegustations.com/homemade-sugar-syrup/
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๐Ÿ‡ฉ๐Ÿ‡ฟ Algerian Almond filled Cookies- Dziriettes

Cuisine Algerian
Keyword Dziriettes
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Author LDSโ€™s Mom

Ingredients

For the dough

  • 3 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 tbsp orange blossom water
  • 1 tsp vanilla powder
  • 3/4 cup water (more or less depending on your flour)

For the filling

  • 3 cups almond flour
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • Zest of 1 lemon

More ingredients

  • 2 cups sugar syrup, please refer to my homemade sugar syrup link above.
  • Whole blanched almond for garnish (optional)
  • 1 egg white for brushing

Instructions

  1. In large bowl, sift the flour and salt.

  2. Add the melted butter and mix well with hands until the butter is well incorporated.

  3. Add orange blossom water and the water gradually.

  4. Mix well with hands and stop adding water once the dough gets together. The dough obtained should not be too soft, it has to get together and should be a little hard. Make sure to not over mix the dough.

  5. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour but preferably overnight.

  6. Prepare the filling ingredients by mixing the almond flour, sugar, lemon zests.

  7. Beat the eggs in a small bowl and add them gradually to the almond flour mixture.

  8. Once the mixture gets together, stop adding eggs. I have used in this recipe 2 eggs but depending of your eggs you may add more or less.

  9. Cover the filling paste with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour.

  10. Dump the dough on a floured working board and roll out the dough to about 1/8 inch thick.

  11. Pass the dough in the pasta machine to make it thinner. Choose the thinnest size possible.

  12. Use a round cookie cutter (of about 3 inches) to cut out the dough.

  13. Make small balls out of the filling paste, the size of small walnuts.

  14. Place a Ball of filling paste in the center of each cut out disc.

  15. With a kitchen brush, brush egg white on the disc of dough, around the ball of filling paste.

  16. Use a toothpick to help shape the Dziriettes. Fold the disc of dough around the filling with the toothpick from the outside and form sort of small folds.

  17. Pinch the small folds of dough with your thumb and index fingers, all around the cookie dough and that forms the traditional Dziriettes.

  18. Place an almond in the center of the filling (optional).

  19. Cover the cookies formed with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

  20. Bake in a 350ยฐF preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until golden.

  21. Drench the baked Dziriette in a slightly warmed syrup.

  22. Enjoy.

Recipe Notes

  • The Algerian traditional Dziriettes are made without the use of Dziriettesโ€™ mold. It is obviously easier and faster ย to use the mold.
  • While forming the Dziriettes, make sure to keep the rest of the dough in a plastic bag so that it doesnโ€™t dry out.
  • The almond filling was enough to make 24 cookies. I have left over dough that I placed in a ziploc bag and put it ย in the freezer for later use.ย 
  • You can divide the dough ingredients in half to avoid having left over dough.
  • The total time in this recipe didnโ€™t include the resting time of the dough.
  • I use US cups for measurements.
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