Sawsan Abu Farha @ Chef in disguise October 29, 2011 Arabic and middle eastern recipes, Dessert

Awwameh

If you had a hard time reading the title, awwameh is also called loqmet el kadi or luqaimat. Not much better ha?

Well this may not be easy to pronounce (or spell) but it is easy to make. Awwameh is basically a yeasted dough that is fried and then sweetened with rosewater syrup. You will probably find more ways to make awwameh as there are ways to spell. All purpose flour, rice flour and semolina find their way into recipes just as potatoes, soda, sprite and corn starch. Different formulas and combinations in an attempt to get those perfect little balls that are crunchy on the outside, soft on the inside. You bite into them and you get a little burst of rosewater syrup perfectly balanced by the light and fluffy cooked dough.

I am sharing two recipes for the same dessert today. One is my mum’s recipe for the crunchiest awwameh you will ever taste. It stays crunchy even after it cools down. Then there is the semolina sprite awameh which results in the fluffiest and lightest awwameh I have ever tried but they are not very crunchy.

You can infuse awwameh with different flavors by adding some spices to the batter like anise or cinnamon or you can infuse the syrup by adding some cardamom pods or cinnamon sticks to it

Rosewater syrup

2 cups sugar

1 cup water

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon of rosewater

In a pot add the sugar, water and lemon juice

cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil and all the sugar had dissolved

lower the heat and cook for 2-5 more minutes.

take off the heat and allow to cool then stir in the rosewater

Mum’s awwameh

1 cup flour

1/3 cup cornflour

1 teaspoon yeast (or 1 teaspoon baking powder)

pinch of salt

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon sugar

Proof the yeast by mixing it with the water and sugar and waiting for it to foam and bubble (if it doesn’t then the yeast has gone bad and you can’t use it)

mix the flour and cornstarch and slat and then add the yeast mixture and stir with a spoon.

Your batter should be like the cake batter (you may need to add more water or flour depending on the type of flour you use but do it one tablespoon at a time)

Stir the batter for 2-4 minutes

cover and allow to rise in a warm place until it doubles in size.

If you use baking powder, just mix all the ingredients together until the mix is homogenous

Fill part of the batter in a small plastic bag, tie it

Cut one of the corners off (the size of the opening depends on how big you want your awwameh to be , the smaller the opening, the smaller the awwameh)

Heat the oil until you drop a little of the dough and it fizzes immediately

prepare a small cup filled with oil and a teaspoon

Hold the bag in your hand and squeeze a little of the batter onto the wet tea spoon

Drop the dough in the hot oil and repeat.

you will need to wet the spoon in the oil after every few times because the batter will stick to it.

stir the dough balls in the oil to ensure they get golden on all the sides.

Take the awwameh out of the oil and into the syrup (the syrup should be room temperature)

Stir the awwameh in the syrup until it is uniformly coated and then take it out.

Semolina sprite awwameh

2 and 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup semolina

1 cup sprite or 7 up

1 tablespoon yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

2 tablespoons yogurt

1 tablespoon cornstarch

pinch of salt

1/2 cup warm water

Proof the yeast by mixing it with the water and sugar and waiting for it to foam and bubble (if it doesn’t then the yeast has gone bad and you can’t use it)

mix the flour, semolina, yogurt, salt and cornstarch and then add the yeast mixture and the sprite and stir with a spoon.

Your batter should be like a cake batter in thickness (you may need to add more water or flour depending on the type of flour you use but do it one tablespoon at a time)