Traditional Algerian Sables Cookies Like Linzer Augen Recipes

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 170°C
• Cream the margarine & sugar(s) until light & fluffy.
• Beat in the egg & vanilla, then gradually fold in the flour & baking powder.
• Mix slowly until a soft dough forms. The dough is very soft & needs handling with care but it shouldn't be sticky. If your dough is still a little sticky, sift in a little extra flour.
• Roll out to about 4mm thick, be sure to flour the rolling pin well.
• Cut out 'tops & bottoms' for your sables.
• Place on a baking tray lined with aluminium foil (shiny side up) & bake for 8 minutes. The sables should be just set but still white.
• Allow the sables to cool on the sheet for a minute then remove to a cold plate or tray to finish cooling.
• When the sables are fully cooled, heat the jam until bubbling.
• Place all the sables tops onto a tray & dust generously with the icing sugar.
• Allow the jam to cool slightly then spoon approx 1/2 tsp of the jam onto the underside of the sables 'bottoms'.
• Then carefully place a 'top' over the blob of jam.
• Allow to set, then store in one layer in an airtight container for upto 10 days.

Steps:

• Whisk together the ground nuts, flour, cinnamon, and cloves. Set aside. Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and both sugars and salt together at medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed. Meanwhile, using a fork, stir the egg and water together in a small bowl and add it to the butter/sugar mixture. Turn off the mixer, add the dry ingredients, then turn it on low and mix only until they disappear into the dough.
• Divide the dough in half. Working with one half at a time, put the dough between two large sheets of wax paper. Using your hands, flatten the dough into a disk, then grab a rolling pin and roll out the dough, turning it over frequently so that the paper doesn't cut into it, until it is about 1⁄4 inch thick. Leave the dough in the paper and repeat with the second piece of dough. Transfer the wrapped dough to a baking sheet (to keep it flat) and refrigerate or freeze it until it is very firm, about 2 hours in the refrigerator or about 45 minutes in the freezer. The rolled-out dough can be wrapped airtight and stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Just thaw the dough enough to cut out the cookies and proceed from there.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Working with one piece of dough at a time and using a cookie cutter, cut out rounds of dough. Place the circles of dough on a rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper, about 1½-inches apart. Gather the scraps so you can re-roll with the next batch. Bake, 11-13 minutes.
• Cookies are done when there's color around the edges and on the bottom. Let cool 5 minutes, then sandwich with a teaspoon of raspberry jam (thinned with a splash of water and heated in the microwave). Finish with a dusting of confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Steps:

• Take 1 mixing bowl and place the flour & salt in it. Add the ghee/oil mixture & mix, slowly adding the water. Mix well -- until you have a smooth dough, place this on your work surface - well dusted with cornflour.
• Split the dough in half. Make the first 1/2 into golf ball sized pieces. Keep the dough covered with a tea towel --.
• Take a dough golf ball. If you are comfortable using the pasta machine then just make the ball into a sausage shape and gently roll out with rolling pin to approximately 3-4mm.
• Begin passing though pasta machine on thinnest setting. NB : if this is your 1st time you can use the pasta machine on the 2nd to thinnest setting before putting it through on the thinnest.
• In you saucepan, melt your ghee on a medium heat. Brush you tray well with ghee using the pastry brush.
• Lay you first strip of phyllo pastry vertically in the centre the tray. Brush the pastry with the ghee.
• Repeat the dough rolling process. Cover the tray with phyllo, remembering to brush with ghee after each strip. You should be able to do this with 5 strips but don't worry if you use more or less.
• Turn the tray round so that you're placing the phyllo strips horizontally over vertical strips. This criss cross is very important so don't forget --.
• Continue rolling your pastry and layering the tray. Remember the ghee after each strip. Continue doing this until you have done 5 layers.
• Prepare you nut filling. Take your food processor and chop up the nuts of your choice until you have the required amount.
• Prepare you nut filling. Take your food processor and chop up the nuts of your choice until you have the required amount.
• Place the nuts in the 2nd mixing bowl and add the sugar, cinnamon, vanilla powder and mazhar - enough mazhar to make the filling hold but not so much that it's sloppy.
• Place filling in the tray over the pastry, gently smoothing it out - but don't press it.
• You now need to repeat the dough rolling, layer making stage all over again until you have 6 layers. You will need to use the 2nd half of the dough by now - just make golf balls again! Don't forget the ghee.
• When you've finished the 5th layer you can choose how to do the top layer. I always roll out one large sheet by hand by other stick to the pasta machine as a large sheet of phyllo is a bit tricky to create and handle!
• If you want to try rolling out a sheet, remember to COVER the dough, rolling pin, surface, your hands etc in LOADS of cornflour. then roll out the the tray size plus 2cm extra.
• Now you need to cut the baklawa and decorate.
• Take you knife and cut vertical straight lines all the way to the bottom. (Approx. 2cm apart)then spin the tray round and cut more lines but diagonally to form diamond shapes. You can also make squares or triangles but traditional Algerian baklawa are diamonds.
• When you've cut the shapes, push a nut into each shape.
• Brush well with the ghee and place in a pre-heated oven at 180 c for 1 hour - 1 hour 10 minutes --.
• The baklawa should be golden and now needs it syrup: Warm the honey and mazhar in the saucepan then pour slowly over the baklawa.
• Allow to sit for 10 minutes then cut out pieces and place in paper cases - preferably the metallic ones as they hold the syrup better.

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
• Gradually add the eggs, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Reduce the speed to low.
• Sift the flour, cinnamon, cake crumbs, and baking powder together into a medium bowl. Add to the creamed mixture all at once and mix just until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
• Add the hazelnut flour and mix just until combined. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until chilled, about 15 minutes.
• While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut rounds of dough using a fluted circular cookie cutter. Use a smaller cutter to cut a hole in half of the rounds. Transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 1 1/2 inches apart. As you are working, reserve the scraps so that they may be rolled again and cut.
• Bake until lightly golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes.
• Allow the cookies to cool for a minute on the baking sheets then transfer, using a spatula, to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.
• Sift confectioners' sugar over the cooled cookies. Coat the cookies without holes lightly and the ones with holes thoroughly. Pipe or spread a thin layer of jam on the cookies without holes. Top with the remaining cookies and press gently to secure.
• Store the cookies in an airtight container.