Qurban

[ChefCrash]

Woke up this morning to the smell of Blossom water in the air. Viviana was making "Qurban", a Christian holy bread, served by priests in Catholic church on Sundays and religious occasions. All I know it's delicious.

QURBAN

Recipe:

500g AP flour

80g sugar

1 tsp Mahlab (Black Cherry pits) ground.

1/4 tsp Mastic gum ground

2 tsp yeast

Water to bring it together.

Sugar dissolved in blossom water to brush on bread after baking.

Mix, knead and let rise.

Roll into 7" rounds, stamp with this (optional):

Set aside to rest 30 minutes. Bake @ 450F and brush with sugar/blossom water mixture.

EDT: Remove foot out of mouth.

Edited November 13, 2006 by ChefCrash (log)

[Nicolai]

1 tsp    Mahlab (Coriander seeds) ground.

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Mahlab = coriander seeds??!?!@?@?

As for the pics, vey nice as usual.

[ChefCrash]

1 tsp    Mahlab (Coriander seeds) ground.

←

Mahlab = coriander seeds??!?!@?@?

As for the pics, vey nice as usual.

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Sorry . I amended the post above.

Gotta stop posting past midnight.

Thanks Nicolai.

Edited November 13, 2006 by ChefCrash (log)

[Swisskaese]

This looks very similar to a bread they make in Samarkand for breakfast. Instead of using a stamp, they make an indention in the middle with their finger tips and then use a needle-like instrument and make marks in the indented part. This bread is only made in Samarkand and not in other parts of Uzbekistan.

[Nicolai]

Samarkand bread is different form Qurban bread in taste and composition.

The visual look might be similar in the sense that Samarkand bread is decorated, however, Samarkand bread comes with over a dozen recipes.

The main difference which gives the game away is the addition of Mahlab to the Qurban bread. Qurban bread also comes with diffferent recipes all over different churches.

The Samarkand bread main flavour comes from the special ferment used which is different variations of ferment based on an assortment of milk - animal fat - meat - onions - anis...etc. They are not all used together but combined to produce different breads.

The Samarkand bread is baked on the inner wall of a clay oven (tandoor) while the Qurban bread is baked flat in any oven type.

So it is bread and they may look similar as well as hundreds of different breads around the world but they are different.

The main differentiator is Milk and Mahlab.

Edited November 14, 2006 by Nicolai (log)

[FoodMan]

As usual fantastic looking food Chef! How do you enjoy eating Qurban? Plain? When I was growing up My grandfather used to buy it from a bakery outside of our town and when it is fresh and hot we ate it plain. But once it is cooled, I loved slicing it topping the slices with butter and sugar and toasting them in the oven or "baboor". Fantastic stuff.

[Abra]

How sweet would you say this bread is? I can't tell if it can only be served with coffee or breakfast, or whether it can accompany savory food. It's certainly beautiful!

Oh, and does blossom water mean orange flower water, or rose, or something else?

[ChefCrash]

How sweet would you say this bread is?  I can't tell if it can only be served with coffee or breakfast, or whether it can accompany savory food.  It's certainly beautiful!

Oh, and does blossom water mean orange flower water, or rose, or something else?

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Abra,

The recipe we use calls for 1/3 C sugar for 3.5 C flour. After baking it is brushed with sweetened blossom water as well. The bread has a slight sweetness. I think it can be great with coffee.

Blossom water is orange flower water.

[Abra]

Thanks! I have mahlab and mastic just sitting in a drawer waiting to be tried, and this looks like the perfect recipe.

Can you tell me how to pronounce qurban? Is it like kurban?

[Rehovot]

Beautiful! I imagine it smells heavenly.

ChefC, do the four designs on the stamp each have a different meaning?

[FoodMan]

Thanks!  I have mahlab and mastic just sitting in a drawer waiting to be tried, and this looks like the perfect recipe.

Can you tell me how to pronounce qurban?  Is it like kurban?

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Abra-

In Lebanon it is usually pronounced "ur-ban" (or oor-ban I guess) and BTW I do not think this works good with savory foods. Try it for breakfast or with coffee as a snack.

[Abra]

Thanks, Elie, that's just what I needed to know!

[can ofan]

Mahlab is not coriander seed.

It is the shelled seed of a wild cherry: Prunus mahalep.

You can use the shelled seed of any cherry if you do not mind the bitterness.

Prunus mahalep is more perfumed so you need to use less.

[ChefCrash]

Mahlab is not coriander seed.

It is the shelled seed of a wild cherry: Prunus mahalep.

You can use the shelled seed of any cherry if you do not mind the bitterness.

Prunus mahalep is more perfumed so you need to use less.

You are correct. thanks.