Briouates aux Amandes (بريوات باللوز)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Food processor or manual almond grinder
• •Heavy 24-28 cm pot for frying
• •Deep-fry thermometer
• •Pastry brush
• •Wire rack set over a tray

Instructions

1. 1

   Fry the almonds

   Heat 3 cm of neutral oil in a small heavy pan to 160°C, or use part of the frying oil before it has seen pastry. Add the dry blanched almonds in small batches and fry until pale gold, 3 to 5 minutes, stirring often. Pull them out a shade lighter than you want; almonds darken as they cool, and dark almonds make a bitter filling. Drain very well and cool completely.

   If the almonds were freshly blanched, spread them on a towel or in a low oven until dry before they touch oil. Water makes the oil spit and keeps the paste dull.
2. 2

   Make almond paste

   Pulse the cooled almonds with the sugar in a food processor, stopping and scraping often. Stop before the almonds release too much oil; you want a moist, grainy paste, not almond butter. Work in the cinnamon, salt, meska horra if using, softened butter, and 2 tablespoons orange blossom water. Knead with your hand until the paste holds together.

   If it crumbles, add orange blossom water by the teaspoon. If it sticks heavily to your fingers, add a spoon of ground almonds or let it rest uncovered for 10 minutes.
3. 3

   Shape the filling

   Roll the almond paste into 36 small logs, each about 2.5 cm long. Keep them covered while you work. The filling should be firm enough to hold its shape inside the pastry, but tender enough to bite cleanly after frying.

4. 4

   Prepare the warqa

   Cut the warqa into long strips, 6 to 7 cm wide. Keep the stack covered with a barely damp cloth so the edges stay supple. If you are using filo, use two thin layers for each strip and brush them very lightly with melted butter or oil; filo is drier than warqa and cracks faster.

5. 5

   Fold the triangles

   Place one almond log near the end of a strip. Fold one corner over the filling to make a triangle, then keep folding left and right, like a flag, with the edges aligned and the filling held snug. Brush the last flap with the flour paste and press to seal. That tight fold matters: air pockets open in the oil and invite oil into the filling.

6. 6

   Warm honey

   Warm the honey with 2 tablespoons orange blossom water in a small saucepan until loose and glossy. Keep it warm over very low heat, but do not let it boil hard. Set a rack over a tray beside it, ready for the briouates.

7. 7

   Fry until gold

   Heat the frying oil in a heavy pot to 170-175°C, filling the pot less than halfway. Fry the briouates in small batches, turning once or twice, until evenly gold and crisp, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the oil is too cool, the layers drink oil; if it is too fierce, the outside colors before the pastry has crisped through.

8. 8

   Dip in honey

   Lift the hot briouates from the oil, let them drain for a few seconds, then slide them straight into the warm honey. Turn them gently and leave them 2 to 3 minutes so the honey enters the thin layers. Lift to the rack, sprinkle with toasted sesame if using, and let the glaze settle before serving.

Chef Tips

• •Warqa is the pastry of the dish. Filo works when warqa is unavailable, but name it as a substitute and use two layers because it dries faster.
• •Do not grind the almonds while warm. Heat pulls out the oil, and then the paste turns heavy before it ever reaches the pastry.
• •Keep the honey warm and loose. The hot briouat must meet warm honey, that is the gesture that gives the pastry its shine and sweetness without making it heavy.
• •Briouates can be savory or sweet across Morocco. This one is the almond sweet from the Fassi urban register. Il n'y a pas une cuisine marocaine, mais des cuisines marocaines, not one Moroccan cuisine, but many.
• •Strain the leftover honey after dipping and keep it for another batch of pastries. It will carry a little orange blossom and almond, which is no loss at all.

Advance Preparation

• •The almond paste can be made 2 days ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Let it soften at room temperature before rolling.
• •Folded, uncooked briouates can be frozen on a tray, then packed airtight for up to 1 month. Fry from frozen at a slightly lower heat so the center warms before the pastry colors.
• •Finished briouates keep 5 to 7 days in an airtight tin at cool room temperature. Separate layers with parchment and avoid the refrigerator unless the room is very hot.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 145g)