These delightful cookies, which are adapted from “Casablanca: My Moroccan Food” by Nargisse Benkabbou (Firefly, 2018), are like a cracked and cakey rose lukum, a gel-like candy often referred to as Turkish delight. Ghriba is a specific type of cookie that Moroccans bake all year long. Recipes vary depending on the region or the family, but they all have one thing in common: They are cracked on the outside and chewy on the inside. When it comes to ghriba, the flavoring possibilities are endless. The most popular varieties are almond, coconut and walnut.
Orange Water and Almond Ghriba Cookies
Makes 16 cookies // 224 calories, 22g fat, 5g protein, 0g net carbs
⅔ cup/100 grams Swerve confectioners style, for coating
2 ¾ cups/300 grams almond flour
1/4 cup walnuts, ground
⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon/80 grams Swerve granulated
2 large organic eggs
2 tablespoons unsalted Kerrygold butter, softened
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon orange blossom water (on Amazon)
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
½ teaspoon kosher salt
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Place confectioners’ sweetener in a small bowl.
Place all of the remaining ingredients in a large bowl and use your hands or a large spatula to mix them together until you have a smooth and slightly sticky dough. Scoop the dough in heaping single tablespoonfuls (about 30 grams each) and roll each into a ball.
Transfer the dough balls to the lined cookie sheet and lightly press each with the palm of your hand, but don’t flatten them completely.
Immediately bake for 15 to 18 minutes until the cookies are cracked and firm on the outside. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. When cool, roll each cookie ball in confectioners’ sweetener until completely coated.
Store the cookies in an airtight container to prevent them from drying out. They will keep for up to seven days.