Makes about40 Cookies
- Active time:20 min
- Start to finish:3 hr (includes chilling and cooling)
April 2009
Take one bite of the crisp cookies known as fekkas
and you’re inhaling the perfumes of the Middle East: orange-flower water (left over from Orange Flan), anise, sesame seeds, and toasted almonds.
-
1
cup
sugar
-
1
stick unsalted butter, melted
-
3/4
cup
whole almonds, toasted (see Tips), cooled, and coarsely chopped
-
2
tablespoons
orange-flower water
-
2
teaspoons
anise seeds
-
1
teaspoon
pure vanilla extract
-
1/2
teaspoon
pure almond extract
-
1/4
cup
plus 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted (see Tips) and cooled, divided
-
3
large eggs
-
2 1/2
cups
all-purpose flour
-
1 1/2
teaspoons
baking powder
-
1/4
teaspoon
salt
-
1
large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water for egg wash
-
Stir together sugar, butter, almonds, orange-flower water, anise seeds, extracts, and 1/4 cup sesame seeds in a large bowl. Add eggs and stir until well combined. Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt until just combined. Chill dough, covered, 1 hour.
-
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
-
Using moistened hands, halve dough and form 2 (11- by 3-inch) loaves on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush with enough egg wash to coat, then sprinkle with remaining tablespoon sesame seeds.
-
Bake until pale golden, about 30 minutes. Loosen from baking sheet with a spatula, then transfer loaves to a rack and cool 15 minutes. (Leave oven on.)
-
Cut warm loaves into 3/4-inch slices with a serrated knife and arrange biscuits, with a cut side down, on a clean baking sheet. Bake until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to rack to cool completely.
Cooks’ note: Biscuits keep in an airtight container at room temperature 3 weeks.
