Gluten-Free Maamoul

Traditionally, in Lebanon, we make maamoul for Easter. In my childhood, I remember how all the family would gather around to make up to 10 kilos of maamoul. It was a big thing that we would wait for year after year. It is a bit of hard work, so most of dessert shops nowadays prepare maamoul and people would buy them ready-made. But what about those who cannot eat gluten like me? It is very hard to find gluten-free ready made maamoul. Today our post will guide you step by step on how to make very tasty maamoul stuffed with walnuts, pistachios, and dates.

Ingredients (pastry)

- ½ cup gluten-free all-purpose flour

- ½ cup corn meal (not corn flour)

- 1 cup polenta

- 165 grams butter, soft

- ½ tsp mahlab (middle-eastern spice)

- ¼ tsp ground aniseed

- ¼ cup sugar

- A pinch of yeast

- ½ coffee cup rose water

- ½ coffee cup orange blossom water

Method (pastry)

(The night before)

1. Put the flour, corn meal, polenta, mahlab, aniseed and sugar in a bowl.
2. Add the soft butter and rub the mixture with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.
3. Cover the bowl with a cloth and put it inside a plastic bag in a cool place for the whole night.

(The next day)

1. Take the bowl out of the plastic bag.
2. Warm the rose water and orange blossom slightly and add the yeast to them.
3. Add the whole mixture to the pastry and start kneading with your hands (or use a standing mixer)
4. Once you feel that the pastry is smooth and well kneaded, cover it and let it rest for 30 minutes (Better in the fridge, if you live in a warm weather).
5. Meanwhile, prepare the filling (Dates, pistachios, and walnuts) (recipes follow).
6. When the filling is ready, take a small portion of the dough and roll it to get a thick rope.
7. Cut it into small pieces.
8. Take each piece of dough and shape it to get a pocket (Check photos).
9. Fill the pocket with the filling you choose and close it well.
10. Use a ma’amoul mold to shape your ma’amoul.
11. (Usually I use the oblong mold for pistachios, the round one for dates, and I use the pastry tweezers for the walnuts ma’amoul) (Check photos).
12. Lay the ma’amoul on the oven baking sheets.
13. Pre-heat oven to 200°C.
14. Bake the dates ma’amoul for 15-20 minutes and the pistachios and walnuts ma’amoul for 12-15 minutes.
15. Sprinkle icing sugar on the pistachio and walnut ma’amoul while still warm.
16. Keep the ma’amoul in an airtight container.

Yields: 40 pieces (mixed) I did 12 dates, 14 pistachios, and 14 walnuts.

Ingredients (Walnut filling)

- 75 grams walnuts (3/4 cup) finely chopped

- 2 tbsp. sugar

- 1 tbsp. rose water

- 1 tbsp. orange blossom water

Method (Walnut filling)

1. Put the walnuts, sugar, rose water, and orange blossom water in a bowl.
2. Mix well.
3. Use to fill the walnut maamoul.

Ingredients (Pistachio filling)

- 75 grams pistachios (3/4 cup) finely chopped

- 2 tbsp. sugar

- 1 tbsp. rose water

- 1 tbsp. orange blossom water

Method (Pistachio filling)

1. Put the pistachios, sugar, rose water, and orange blossom water in a bowl.
2. Mix well.
3. Use to fill the pistachio maamoul.

Ingredients (Dates filling)

- 150 grams dates, finely chopped

- 1 tbsp. rose water

- 1 tbsp. orange blossom water

Note: I don’t add sugar to the dates, because they are sweet enough.

Method (Dates filling)

1. Put the chopped dates, rose water, and orange blossom water and knead well until you get a paste.
2. Shape the date paste into small balls to use in filling the dates maamoul.