Description
Almond Briouats are traditional Moroccan pastries filled with aromatic almond paste, wrapped in crisp pastry, fried until golden, and soaked in orange-flower-scented honey for a rich, layered dessert.
Ingredients
- 1 kg (35 oz) whole raw almonds
- 1⅔ cups granulated sugar
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ⅛ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp mastic gum powder (optional)
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- ⅓ cup orange-flower water
- 1 kg warqa pastry sheets (or filo pastry)
- ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted (for brushing)
- 2 egg yolks, lightly beaten (for sealing)
- Approx. 4 cups vegetable oil (for frying)
- 45 oz mild-flavored honey
- 1–2 Tbsp orange-flower water (for honey syrup)
- Optional garnish: sesame seeds
Instructions
- Blanch almonds in boiling water for 1–2 minutes, drain, peel, and let dry thoroughly.
- Fry half the almonds in batches until light golden. Drain and cool.
- Grind fried almonds with half the sugar to form a paste. Grind raw almonds with remaining sugar and combine with the first paste.
- Mix in cinnamon, salt, mastic powder, softened butter, and orange-flower water. Knead to a moist, pliable almond paste. Shape into cherry-sized balls.
- Cut warqa or filo into strips (~5 × 30 cm). Brush center lightly with melted butter.
- Place almond ball near the bottom of a strip. Fold triangularly to form a briouat. Seal final flap with egg yolk.
- In a frying pan, heat oil (~½ inch deep). Separately, heat honey with orange-flower water until hot and slightly foamy.
- Fry briouats in batches until golden (5–7 minutes), then transfer directly into warm honey. Submerge and coat, then remove to cool on a rack or strainer.
- Sprinkle sesame seeds while still sticky if using. Cool completely before stacking or storing.
Notes
- Use a mix of raw and fried almonds for optimal texture.
- Filo dough is a suitable alternative to warqa but requires gentler handling.
- Mastic gum adds traditional aroma, but it’s optional.
- Cool completely before storing to maintain crispness.
- For a baked version, brush with butter and bake until golden, then soak in warm honey.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Frying
- Cuisine: Moroccan
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 small briouat
- Calories: 120
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 20mg
- Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Unsaturated Fat: 5g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 12g
- Fiber: 1g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 5mg
