Sweet Makarouns – Assabeh Zeinab

Name: Sweet Makarouns - Assabeh Zeinab
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Yield: 30-40
Cuisine: Middle Eastern

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Desserts Snacks

Sweet Makarouns (Assabeh Zeinab) are crispy, syrup-soaked treats with flavours of aniseed and cinnamon. Perfect for anyone who loves Middle Eastern sweets!

PREP TIME

30 minutes

COOK TIME

15 minutes

SERVES

30-40

About this recipe

I love making Sweet Makarouns, also known as Assabeh Zeinab because every woman across the Middle East seems to have her own way of shaping these treats—whether it’s with a sieve, a mamoul mould, or even a spoon! These delightful, finger-shaped sweets are deep-fried to a golden crisp and then soaked in sugar syrup, flavoured with aniseed and cinnamon, making them light, sweet, and utterly delicious.

This Sweet Makarouns, recipe is easy to follow and perfect for anyone who loves Middle Eastern desserts. The dough is pressed against a sieve or mould to create that signature texture, and then deep-fried to perfection. If you’re a fan of sweet treats like this, be sure to try my chewy Crunchy Date Treats, a simple dessert you can make in under 20 minutes, or my Blighat Sesame Bows, a Moroccan pastry with a honey coating that’s bursting with sesame and aniseed flavours.

Ingredients

Main Ingredients

500 grams plain flour
1 cup sesame seeds toasted
1 tablespoon aniseed ground
½ teaspoon cinnamon ground
½ teaspoon mahlab ground
½ teaspoon nutmeg ground
½ cup of sugar
1 cup of olive oil
1 cup of warm water
canola/vegetable oil for deep frying

Attir - Sugar Syrup

1 cup of sugar
½ cup of water
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoon rosewater

Notes from Rouba

Prepare the sugar syrup prior to making these sweets.
Another version of this is skipping the syrup altogether and dusting the makarouns with icing sugar after frying.
If you don’t like frying and prefer baking instead, you sure can bake these rolled delights for 15 minutes or until golden brown and enjoy them crunchy.

Method

Step 1.

Begin by making the Attir – Sugar Syrup. Place all the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil (this happens fairly fast). Lower the heat and continue to boil for approximately 6-7 minutes until the syrup slightly thickens. Remove from heat and cool completely.

Step 2.

For the dough mixture: place all the ingredients in a bowl and combine them until you form a soft dough. If you find that the dough is still hard, add water little by little until the dough is soft and easy to work with.

Slightly oil the sieve or the mould, then take a walnut-sized roll of dough (approximately 15 gram portion), place it on the oiled sieve or inside a mamoul mould and flatten it. Roll it over the grater or inside the mould once forward to give it texture.

Repeat with the remaining dough. Remember to slightly oil the sieve or the mould as necessary.

Step 3.

Deep fry on medium heat for a deep golden colour. If the oil is too hot, the Makarouns will burn fairly quickly.

Remove from the oil and strain for 1 minute. Place into the cooled sugar syrup. Do this quickly so that the Makarouns absorb the syrup. Remove using a slotted spoon and place it in your serving dish.