Semolina and Coconut Cookies

The choice of this recipe was encouraged by a friend from Morocco. He wanted semolina cookies, one of his favorite treats while growing up. However, he doesn't have the recipe so we searched high and low for it. We finally settled on one that we found on youtube and subsequently the blog posted up by SouSouKitchen.

My friend couldn't remember if the semolina cookies had coconut flakes in them so I decided to follow the recipe up until the lemon extract and split the mixture in half. Half will be with coconut flakes and semolina and the other part will solely be with semolina.

Semolina is a coarsely grounded durum wheat and is usually procured by sifting out the finer flour. My friend probably likes semolina because it is the finer version of couscous, which is a staple of Morocco.

4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
7 oz. powdered sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1.5 tsp lemon extract
7 oz. sweetened coconut flakes
Fine Semolina Flour
Powdered in Sugar (For garnish)
Almonds (for garnish)
Whole Cloves (for garnish)

1. Preheat the oven to 360 degrees F. 
2. Mix eggs, oil and sugar. Add and mix baking powder and lemon extract.
3. Remove half of the mixture to another bowl.
4. Semolina and Coconut Cookies
1. Incorporate the sweetened coconut flakes to the mixture. 
2. Add semolina flour and I suggest using your hands so that you can feel when it starts coming together as dough. It took approximately 9.2 oz of semolina flour when I felt that it was ready.
5. Semolina Cookies
1. Using your hands, add semolina flour to the mixture to feel when it starts coming together as dough. I didn't measure how many ounces it took for the plainer version but am guessing that it should take more than 9.2 oz.
6. Rub hands with oil so that the dough will not stick to your fingers for the next step.
7. Form a ball and flatten top of the cookie. Dip the top into powdered sugar and garnish with almond and/or clove.
8. Bake for 12 - 15 minutes, depending on preference. 12 minutes for a softer and lighter cookie and 15 minutes for a crispier and darker cookie.
   

Right before it goes into the oven.

A close-up between the two.

I went a bit crazy with the cloves...

These cookies will be great to snack on with coffee and it works with either version. The coconut flakes made the cookie crispier but it hid the semolina and lemon flavor. The semolina cookies had a granular texture comparable to corn bread. The lemon taste made a small appearance so the next time I make these cookies, it will have to be with zest instead of the extract to intensify its oomph. In addition, I will have to control myself with the cloves because they are not edible and it was a pain to remove them.

My friend liked the cookies and said it tasted like the ones he had in Morocco. That means score for me. The only criticism was that it was a bit hard. The next time I make these, I will try them with butter and see if that helps to soften the cookie.