Sami Tamimi’s lemon and pistachio cookies recipe

“Middle Eastern ma’akaroon have nothing to do with French macarons,” says chef Sami Tamimi. “The Middle Eastern ones are traditionally made from semolina, olive oil and aniseed and are deep-fried before being drenched in sugar syrup,” he says. “Here is a slightly healthier way of making these buttery cookies, which are pretty easy to make.”

Lemon and pistachio cookies (Ma’akaroon)

Ingredients

(Makes 15)

125g pistachios, finely ground

125g ground almonds

100g caster sugar

½tsp mastic, ground

¼tsp baking powder

Salt

2tsp finely chopped preserved lemon

1tsp lemon zest

1tsp vanilla bean paste

1tbsp runny honey

1 egg, lightly whisked

15g unsalted butter, at room temperature

Method

1. Put the ground pistachios, ground almonds, sugar, mastic, baking powder and ⅛ teaspoon of salt into a large mixing bowl and mix well, just enough to combine everything together. Add the preserved lemon, lemon zest, vanilla, honey, egg and butter and give everything a good mix, using a wooden spoon or spatula. The mixture should be slightly sticky.

2. Place the icing sugar on a large plate and start rolling the batter into walnut-size balls, about 30g each. Gently roll the balls in the icing sugar, making sure that they are well coated on all sides. Arrange on a large oven tray lined with baking parchment, evenly spaced out. Cover the tray and leave in the fridge for 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 175°C fan and bake the cookies for 10–12 minutes, or until they start to get a bit of colour. Leave them to cool completely before serving.

Boustany by Sami Tamimi is published in hardback by Ebury, priced £30. Photography by Ola O Smit. Available June 19.