Middle Eastern Date-Filled Cookies (Ma’amoul)
These beautiful cookies are perfect for any special occasion. While they are a bit time-consuming to make, if you have an afternoon free they’re definitely worth the effort. Ma’amoul means “stuffed” and these cookies can be stuffed with a number of different fillings; date filling is traditional for holidays, but walnut and pistachio are common too. My Syrian mother-in-law taught me this recipe and it’s found in my cookbook.
Estimated Nutrition (whole recipe, rough)
Counts 11 of 16 ingredients — the other 5 aren't in our nutrition table and contribute nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume — 11 portions →
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Cherry | 1 cup (138g) | 87 |
| Date | 1 date (24g) medjool | 66 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Fennel | 1/2 bulb (87g) | 27 |
| Nutmeg | 1 tsp ground (2.2g) | 12 |
| Cloves | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 7 |
| Cinnamon | 1 tsp ground (2.6g) | 6 |
| Allspice | 1 tsp ground (1.9g) | 5 |
| Ginger | 1 tsp grated fresh (2g) | 2 |
| Cake | not in our table | 0 |
| Seed | not in our table | 0 |
| Anise | not in our table | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
| Ghee | not in our table | 0 |
Totals for the whole recipe, adding one typical portion per ingredient — listed above. Quantities in the recipe are not counted, so this is a rough guide only — not suitable for medical or dietary planning.
Ingredients
- ½ Tablespoons FOR THE CAKE SPICE MIX:
- 1-¼ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoons Ground Allspice
- ½ teaspoons Ground Mahlab (ground Seed Kernel From St Lucie Cherries)
- ¼ teaspoons Ground Nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoons Ground Ginger
- ¼ teaspoons Ground Anise
- ¼ teaspoons Ground Fennel Seed
- ¾ pounds Ground Cloves
- 2 Tablespoons FOR THE DATE FILLING:
- 1-½ teaspoon Pitted Dates, Coarsely Chopped (or Date Paste)
- 1 cup Canola Oil
- ¾ cups Cake Spice Mix (recipe Above)
- ¼ cups FOR THE DOUGH:
- ¾ cups Sugar
- 4 cups Water
- ½ teaspoons Canola Oil
- ¼ cups Clarified Butter (Ghee)