Saturday, December 3, 2016

Christmas Around the World. Ghraybeh (Lebanese Butter Cookies) #ChristmasCookies

Welcome to Day 3 of the 12 Days of Cookies, hosted by Family Around the Table and Cooking With Carlee.  We will be filling the season with all kinds of delicious cookies.  Be sure to check out some of the recipes below or you can follow along on Facebook or Twitter by searching #ChristmasCookies.  We also have a 12 Days of Cookies Pinterest board where you can see all of the goodness!  May your holidays be sweet!

I am traveling around the world during these 12 days and bringing you a Christmas Cookie celebrated by different countries.  So far we have visited Italy with these delightful, bright, lemony Anginetti and Poland with these rich, decadent almond crescents called Rogaliki.

Today we are heading over to Lebanon and I am sharing these tender, orange flavored cookies called Ghraybeh.  Ghraybeh can be coated in powdered sugar if you like a sweeter cookie.  I like just a touch of sweetness so chose to top mine with pine nuts.  I LOVE pine nuts and these cookies with just a hint of orange are the perfect foil for them.


These little darlings only contain 4 ingredients and no eggs so they are perfect for any of you who suffer from allergies.  I found this recipe on a new (to me) blog, Rosewater and Orange Blossoms. The author of this blog lives right here in my home State of Michigan and shares "fresh and classic Lebanese recipes".  I have a feeling I am going to be visiting this blog a lot.  Maureen posted this recipe for Lebanese Butter Cookies back in 2012.  I am very glad that I found it and I think you will be too.



Ghraybeh
slightly adapted from Rosewater and Orange Blossoms

2 sticks butter, room temperature
1 c. powdered sugar
1 t. orange blossom water
2 c. flour
Pine nuts for garnish

In large bowl of stand mixer, fitted with whisk attachment, whip the butter at high speed for 5 minutes, scraping occasionally, until creamy and pale.  Add the sugar and orange blossom water and beat until fluffy.  Turn the speed to low and mix in the flour, 1/2 c. at a time, until well combined. Cover the dough and let rest for half an hour.

Form handfuls of the dough into 1/2" logs and then slice the logs into 1/2" diagonal slices.  Place onto a heavy, ungreased baking pan and press a few pine nuts into each cookie. Bake in a preheated 300* oven for 20-25 minutes, until the bottom of the cookie is golden but the top has not browned at all. Let cool completely on the pan before removing.  Print Recipe

Day 3 of 12 Days of #ChristmasCookies




4 comments:

  1. What a simple cookie and I just love the sound of it. I'll bet those pine nuts were great on them too. I am having the best time seeing all of these cookies from around the world!

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    Replies
    1. I'm so glad you are enjoying it Carlee. Thanks for letting me know.

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  2. What is orange blossom water?? These cookies sound so simple and good!

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    Replies
    1. It is a flavoring, kind of like vanilla. It is used by many Mediterranean cultures and can be found in ethnic specialty shops or on line at Nielsen-Massey which is where I got mine.

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