gazelle horns

[chezcherie]

i'm hoping to make the pastry/cookie known as gazelle's horns. i have a recipe, but the problem is that i've never had them, so i don't know if the recipe is a good one. the dough is not at all sweet (although the pastries are finished by a dusting of powdered sugar)--the dough calls for 2 1/2 cups flour, about a tablespoon of butter, a little cinnamon and rosewater and a little regular water. the dough is very easy to roll out, but quite dense. they are filled with an almond paste and shaped into crescents. the finished pastries are not very sweet, which i actually like, but i'm just not sure if they are the "real deal". can anyone describe the texture of this dessert? thanks.

[Gifted Gourmet]

Maybe it looks something like this Moroccan Gazelle Horns?

can anyone describe the texture of this dessert?

. ... I would think that the dough was somewhat flaky ... maybe not, chewy?

[Gifted Gourmet]

Come to think of it, I lived in Morocco near Casablanca as a child when my father was with the US Air Force and I always have orange flower water (and rose water) which I mix with almond flour to make something called a "snake" which is made from marzipan filled phyllo ... maybe I'll try the gazelle horns as well! Thanks for the impetus to try these, chezcherie!

[chezcherie]

thanks for the link, gg--the recipe looks much the same as the one i have, so i know that the dough contains no sugar, and the ratios look similar (orange flower water, yolk, butter, etc.) so maybe i'm in the ballpark...next step will be to surprise my moroccan friend with a test batch.

[Nicolai]

Maybe it looks something like this Moroccan Gazelle Horns?

can anyone describe the texture of this dessert?

. ... I would think that the dough was somewhat flaky ... maybe not, chewy?

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Interesting that Gazelle Horns as named in Arabic on the web site link you provided reads: Kaab el ghzal.

Which translation is in fact Gazelle Heel and not Gazelle Horn.

So in Arabic it is known as Heel and in English as Horn.

There.

[Adam Balic]

Come to think of it, I lived in Morocco near Casablanca as a child when my father was with the US Air Force and I always have orange flower water (and rose water)  which I mix with almond flour to make something called a "snake" which is made from marzipan filled phyllo ... maybe I'll try the gazelle horns as well! Thanks for the impetus to try these, chezcherie!

←

One of these?

[Gifted Gourmet]

That's the one!! Thanks for the photo because when I made these as a caterer, and a tired one at that, there were no digital cameras!

the recipe

M'hanncha means "the snake" and this pastry certainly looks liek a snake. It is made of filo dough and is then coiled like a snake. It is filled with an almond paste. You can make a large pastry with larger sheets of filo, or you can make individual sizes, which is much easier.

Edited October 24, 2006 by Gifted Gourmet (log)