Quttab

This cookie is irresisteable edible Almond-filled  cookie with golden and tender crust, Qottaab is a pastry filled with ground almond and sugare, this delight is originally from Yazd,


ingredients:


Dough
1/2 cup semi thick and sweet  yogurt
1/2 cup melted butter
2,1/2 cups flour
2 egg yolks 
a pinch of salt  or u can use 1/8 tea spoon  salt
1 tea spoon  baking powder
1/2 teaspoon  yeast (powdered)
1 teaspoon sugar
3 tablespoons lukewarm water
 Direction :
Dissolve the  yeast in luckwarm water, leave it for 5 mins in a warm place, whisk the egg yolks with a fork, mix the yolks with melted butter and yogurt, then add  the yeast mixture, flour, baking powder and salt to the mixture of yolks , yogurt and butter, fold them all together gradually, add more flour if it is stciky,  put teh dough ina zip lock bag, leave the dough for an hour in warm place,
 Ingredients for filling:

1 cup ground almonds
1 cup icing sugar
2 teaspoon  ground cardamom
1/8 teaspoon almond extract or essense
Dusting:
1/3 cup icing sugar
1/2 teaspon ground cardamom

Roll out the dough onto a floured board. ( the thickness of the rolled dough should be 0.5 cm)

Cut out rounds using metal cookie cutter or round mold, ( 10 cm round cookie cutter)

place 2 table spoons of  the mixture  of ground almonds , icing sugar ( you can grind sugar cubes to make fine icing sugar) and ground cardamom  in the center of each round, press both sides of the dough over each other, Twist the round  carefuly to keep the filling inside , you can use piroshki press set or turnover press sets, or simply you can do it wih your hands,

Tips: brush the edge of  each round  with  water or milk, they would  work like glue
 if you dont have the press set, place the round or circle  in the palm of your hand, slightly folded, and put 2 tablespoons of the filling in the center , using your thumb and index fingers pinch and twist  the edge to seal and decorate the edge.

Arrange Quttabs nto a greased baking sheet lined wth  baking pape, bake them in a prheated oven  in  180 c o 350 degree fahrenheit,  on the middle shelf for half an hour until golden . remove fromthe oven , let them cool slightly , then dust them with  mixtue of icing sugar and ground cardamom.

In traditional way they fry quttabs instead of baking in the oven.
Noohe jaan!