Ghraybeh Butter Cookies
Clarified butter and pistachios are what make these ghraybeh. Powdered sugar, flour and a little orange blossom water come together in 25 minutes, then 14 minutes in the oven for 10 cookies.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- 14 min
- Total
- 39 min
- Serves
- 10
Ingredients
What you’ll need — tap to tick off as you go
- 200 g
- 90 g
- 280 g
- 40 g
- 30 g
- 1 tsp
- 1 pinch
Process
Timers built in · swap anything · ask as you cook
Let the clarified butter sit at room temperature until it is soft like thick cream, about 30 minutes. If it is liquid, chill it briefly until it just sets.
Sift the all-purpose flour, cornstarch and powdered sugar into a bowl, then add the pinch of salt and whisk to combine evenly.
Add the soft clarified butter and the orange blossom water to the dry ingredients. Rub everything together with your fingertips until no dry flour remains and the dough holds when squeezed.
Gather the dough into a ball without kneading. Wrap it and rest in the fridge for 20 minutes so the flour hydrates and the butter firms slightly.
Heat the oven to 160°C and line two baking trays with parchment paper.
Pinch off walnut-sized pieces of dough, about 25 g each, and roll them into smooth balls between your palms. Place them on the trays 3 cm apart.
Press one whole pistachio gently into the centre of each ball, flattening it into a 1 cm thick round at the same time. Do not press all the way through.
Bake one tray at a time for 12 to 14 minutes. The cookies should stay pale ivory and only barely colour at the base; they will still feel soft in the centre.
Leave the ghraybeh on the tray for 10 minutes to set, then transfer to a rack to cool completely. Dust lightly with powdered sugar before serving if you like.
Kitchen notes
Kitchen notes
- The one mistake most people make is overbaking: ghraybeh should never brown on top. Pull them when the tops are still pale and the bottoms are just faintly golden, or they turn hard and chalky.
- If the dough cracks when you roll it, the butter is too cold. Warm the bowl with your hands for a minute or add a teaspoon of soft clarified butter, never water.
- Weigh the flour rather than scooping with a cup. Too much flour is the second most common cause of crumbly, dry cookies.
- Clarified butter is essential. Regular butter contains water and milk solids that make the dough spread and the texture gritty.
Substitutions
- clarified butter→ghee
- orange blossom water→rose water or vanilla extract
- pistachios→blanched almonds or a pinch of cinnamon
Storage & reheating
Keep cooled ghraybeh in an airtight tin at room temperature for up to 2 weeks; layer them between sheets of parchment so they do not knock against each other. They also freeze well for up to 2 months in a sealed container. To refresh, warm them on a tray at 150°C for 4 to 5 minutes, then cool before serving.
FAQ
The questions we get asked most
Why did my ghraybeh spread flat in the oven?
The butter was too warm or partly melted before baking. Chill the shaped dough for 15 minutes and bake on a cool tray, and keep the oven at 160°C rather than higher.
Why are my cookies crumbly and dry instead of melting in the mouth?
You likely added too much flour or overbaked them. Weigh the flour, sift it, and take the cookies out while the tops are still pale ivory; they firm up as they cool.
Can I use regular butter instead of clarified butter?
Regular butter contains water and milk solids, so the cookies spread more and taste less clean. If you must, brown the butter first and strain out the solids, then chill it until soft.
Can I make ghraybeh dough ahead of time?
Yes. Wrap the dough and refrigerate it for up to 3 days, or freeze it for up to 1 month. Bring it to cool room temperature for 20 minutes before shaping, or it will crack.
How do I know when ghraybeh are done?
They should look matte and pale with only the faintest golden tinge on the base, and they will feel soft and slightly underdone in the centre. They set firm within 10 minutes on the tray.
Can I add cardamom or other flavourings to the dough?
Yes, a quarter teaspoon of ground cardamom or a teaspoon of rose water works well. Add it with the butter so the flavour distributes evenly, and avoid anything watery like juice.
Why did the pistachio sink or the cookies crack around it?
Pressing too hard pushes the nut through and splits the dough. Press just until the pistachio sits flush and the round flattens to about 1 cm thick.
Ask KitchenMind about this recipe
Tell it what’s different tonight — it works within the actual recipe.
