Makroudh

Step 1: Rub ¾ cup olive oil or melted margarine and ¼ tsp salt into 1 ⅛ lb fine semolina with your fingertips until every grain is coated and it feels like damp sand. Cover and rest for 1 hour.

Step 2: Make the syrup: boil 14 oz sugar, 1 cup water and 1 tbsp lemon juice for 8–10 minutes until it coats a spoon. Add 1 tbsp orange blossom water and cool.

Step 3: Knead 10 ½ oz date paste (ajwa) with 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp ground cloves and 1 tbsp olive oil until soft and smooth. Roll into ropes 1.5 cm thick.

Step 4: Sprinkle ¾ cup warm water over the semolina a little at a time and gather it into a soft dough without kneading hard.

Step 5: Take a fist-sized piece of dough and roll into a log 3 cm thick. Press a deep channel along its length with your finger, lay a date rope in it and pinch the dough closed over the top.

Step 6: Roll the log gently to seal and flatten it slightly, then press a pattern on top with a makroudh stamp or the back of a fork. Cut on the diagonal into diamonds about 4 cm long.

Step 7: Heat 3 cups sunflower oil for frying to 350°F. Fry the diamonds in batches for 4–5 minutes until golden-brown all over. Common mistake: oil too hot — the outside darkens while the inside stays raw and powdery.

Step 8: Drop the hot makroudh straight into the cool syrup for 1–2 minutes, then lift out onto a rack to drain. Store in an airtight tin for up to a week.