Iftar recipes by Westin

Lahabi Kebab

10 Servings

Ingredients of Lahabi Kebab

1 kilogram of minced lamb

2 teaspoon ginger paste

5 mint leaves

1 teaspoon nutmeg powder

2 teaspoon garlic paste

Refined oil as required

2 teaspoon garam masala powder

4 teaspoon chili powder egg

2 onion

Salt as required

Photo: Collected

How to make Lahabi Kebab

Step 1 Wash and strain the mince properly

To make this main dish recipe, wash the minced lamb well under running water and drain. Keep the mince in a strainer to drain the water completely.

Step 2 Make the kebab mix

Take a grinder and add minced lamb along with garlic and ginger paste, nutmeg powder, 1 finely chopped onion, garam masala powder, salt, eggs, and chili powder and grind it to make a thick and coarse paste. This paste is your kebab mix.

Step 3 Shape it into kebabs

Next, add 1 finely chopped onion along with the chopped mint leaves to the kebab mix. Take out a lemon-sized ball from the kebab mix and flatten it using your hands to make a round flat disk shape.

Step 4 Fry the kebabs and serve hot

Now, place a non-stick pan over medium flame and add oil to it. Once the oil is hot enough, put the kebabs in it and fry them until crisp. Once done, transfer the kebabs to a tissue paper-lined plate to drain off excess oil. Serve hot with mint chutney or tomato ketchup to enjoy!

Tips

You can also make a luscious gravy with boiled tomatoes, yogurt, ginger garlic paste, red chili powder, and whole spices and add the fried kebabs to it.

You can shape the kebab in any way that you like such as cylindrical, circular, etc.

Date Maamoul

Making the crust

In a bowl place the semolina and add the butter/ghee and oil to it (start with 1/4 cup of oil with the butter and ghee). It is very important for the ghee or butter to be melted not softened and hot

Rub the butter and oil into the semolina until they are completely absorbed by it. The semolina will resemble wet sand.

Cover and leave overnight. This will allow the semolina granules to swell and soften 

The next day add the flour, mastic, mahlab, powdered milk, anise and baking powder.

Dissolve the yeast in the water with the 1 teaspoon of sugar and wait for it to foam and bubble       Add it to the semolina mix

Dissolve the 1/2 cup of sugar in the orange blossom and rosewater then add it to the semolina

Mix gently, you take a lump of dough and then crumble it between your fingers and then repeat.

At first you will get clumps then the dough will come together. You are not aiming for a smooth dough ball. Just for a dough that comes together and is homogenous

Do not mix longer since this will develop the gluten and cause the maamoul to be tough. 

Cover and allow to rest for one hour

Take a small amount of dough and try rolling it into a ball, if it crumbles you need to add 1/4 cup water and knead gently, cover and leave for 10 minutes. Try to roll it again if it is still crumbly add the remaining 1/4 cup of oil and knead very gently

Maamoul Filling

We can use ground dates that are sold as a paste or you can use regular dates that you pit and knead with some butter or olive oil.

Photo: Collected

If your dates are on the dry side, soak them with some hot water for 30 minutes then drain them 

1 kg pitted dates/date paste 

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon of cardamom

Orange blossom water, cardamom and cinnamon are added for flavor and are entirely optional

Taste the filling and adjust the sweetness and spices according to your taste, just remember that there is not sugar in the crust so the filling has to be on the extra-sweet side

You can replace half of the sugar with 1/4 cup of simple syrup. I find that the addition of the syrup keeps the filling from drying out while baking and makes it more flavorful

Making the maamoul

Take a walnut size piece of dough

Keep the rest of the dough covered or it will dry out

If making date maamoul:

Form the kneaded date puree into small balls about half the size of the dough balls

Flatten the dough ball, place the date ball inside and seal the dough around the stuffing making sure the filling is completely enclosed by the dough and shape it into a ball.

Shaping the Maamoul using the molds

Place the dough in a mold, press firmly but do not overdo it or the maamoul will stick to the mold (see the notes for a trick that will help you get the cookies out of the molds whole every time)

Place a kitchen towel on a cutting board or your kitchen table

Then invert the mold and tap the end of the mold on the kitchen towel and the formed cookie will fall out.

If making pistachio or walnut maamoul

Form a small cup of dough using your thumb to make a hole and pinching the sides thin. Stuff with desired filling so it comes 3/4 of the way up and close carefully, rolling smoot 

Baking Maamoul 

I bake maamoul on the middle rack of a preheated oven (230 C) till the edges are golden brown (5-12 minutes) and then place them under the broiler till the tops are golden brown (2-5 minutes)

Take the cookies out of the oven and allow them to cool on the baking sheet for 10- 15 minutes then move them to a cooling rack because they are prone to crumble if you move them when they are still hot

Important notes about making maamoul:

You can bake maamoul without shaping it, just form the stuffed cookies into balls and arrange them on a baking sheet and bake them, they will be just as tasty without the molds or decorations

To make it easier to get the cookies out of the molds, I line the molds with a little piece of plastic wrap, press the filled dough then use the plastic wrap to take the dough out of the mould then peel off the plastic wrap

Maamoul bakes really quickly, don't walk away from the oven while the cookies are baking they can go from white to black in a couple of minutes.

Kept in an airtight container these cookies will last for 3 weeks, it will last even longer to store it in the fridge.

The fat content in any maamoul recipe determines the texture of the finished cookie. The rule is you need 450-500 grams fat (butter, ghee and oil) for each kilogram maamoul. Use less and you will get a crunchy maamoul. Use more and you will get a melt in your mouth buttery maamoul

Rosewater and orange blossom water are optional, you can replace them with water or milk.