I have fond childhood memories of my father bringing me these sweets with him on his way back from work. I love them and I still remember their soft, sweet, melt in the mouth texture. I decided to try to make it myself at home, and it turned out delicious.
Let’s cook together and have some fun! 🙂
This recipe makes 20 pieces.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Flour
- 1/4 cup Fine Semolina
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened Shredded Coconut
- 1/4 cup Powdered Sugar
- 1/4 cup Melted Butter
- 2 tbsp Oil
- 1 Egg
- 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tbsp Yogurt
- 1/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
- Pinch of Salt
- 1 1/2 cup Water
- 1 1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 tsp Lemon Juice
- 1 tbsp Milk
- Optional: 1 tsp Orange Blossom
- Optional: Pine Nuts for Decoration
- Optional: Chopped Pistachios for Decoration
Making the Oryx Eyes
I started by making my sugar syrup. I added my water and granulated sugar to a sauce pan and placed my pan on medium heat. I kept mixing until the sugar was totally dissolved and the mixture became transparent. I then added my lemon juice and stopped stirring. I let the mixture simmer for about 5 minutes then mixed in my Orange blossom and let it simmer for 2 additional minutes then turned off the heat. I made sure to prepare my sugar syrup before I baked my cookies because I needed it to cool down before I place my cookies in it.
I then mixed the flour, semolina, coconut, baking powder, and salt in a medium sized bowl. In a separate small bowl, I mixed my powdered sugar, butter, oil, egg, yogurt, and vanilla until everything is well combined. I poured the content of the small bowl on top of the dry ingredients in the large one. I folded everything together using a rubber spatula, until a soft dough forms. I then started shaping by taking one tbsp of the dough and forming it into the shape of an eye. I then placed them on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat. I made a small cut in the middle of each piece and placed one pine nut in the incision. I finally brushed the top with some milk and placed them on the middle rack of an oven preheated to 375 degrees Fahrenheit or 190 degrees Celsius. I baked them until their bottoms became golden brown (around 10 min). I then broiled the top for 5 additional minutes or until their top is golden brown.
The instant the cookies came out of the oven, I placed them in the sugar syrup for 5 minutes on each side. I then moved them to my serving plate and sprinkled some chopped pistachio on top for decoration.
Enjoy this soft and delicious middle eastern sweet! 🙂
