Maamoul

Rub semolina, all purpose flour and ghee together with your fingertips until every grain is coated. Cover and rest for at least 4 hours or overnight so the semolina softens.

Mix in sugar, instant yeast, orange blossom water and enough of milk to form a soft dough that holds together. Rest 30 minutes.

Mash dates with butter, cinnamon and cardamom into a smooth paste (warm it briefly if stiff). Roll into 30 small balls.

Heat the oven to 180 C. Flatten a walnut-sized piece of maamoul dough in your palm, wrap it around a ball of date balls and seal. Press into a floured maamoul mould and knock it out onto a lined sheet pan. (No mould? Shape into domes and pattern the tops with a fork.)

Bake shaped cookies until just golden underneath and pale on top, 15 to 18 minutes. Cool completely on the pan (they are fragile while warm), then dust with powdered sugar.