Almond Mhencha
I have reached new levels of gourmet satisfaction. Seriously. Last week, I made about 3 kg of caramelized onions and ever since, I have been adding them to anything savoury. The majority of them were quickly thrown in a sandwich between melted cheese and occasional pieces of chicken. It might be time to go on a veggie cure!
On another note, I am off to Morocco soon and I cannot wait! There are so many recipes and techniques I want to investigate further when I am there. But mostly, I cannot wait to be home, see the family and let my mom take care of me a little bit. Something I became even more grateful for since, well, I had my own baby. But let’s go back to cooking techniques and discuss this pastry.
Do you know mhencha? In Moroccan Arabic, mhencha comes from the word hench which means serpent, so in way, mhencha means serpentined. This cute pastry consists of a delicious almond paste tucked in a filo sheet (warqa for Moroccans), then rolled to form a swirling snake and finally dipped in simmering honey. I made minis a few weeks ago, they were so good, my friends argued over the last one. I know what to bake the next time they come to visit!
They might look or sound a bit challenging technically but in reality, they are pretty simple, the key to make a successful mhencha is to not break your filo pastry. To avoid that, make sure to 1. brush the filo sheet thoroughly with melted butter and 2. not over-tighten the pastry the first time your roll it.
Ok, I am off to eat broccoli.
Almond mhencha
INGREDIENTS
Makes 8 mini mhencha
Almond paste
250g blanched almonds
120g caster sugar
Pinch cinnamon
Pinch salt
3 tablespoons orange blossom water
10grunsalted butter, softened
To roll the pastry
8 sheets filo pastry, 20 x 30 cm (200 gr)
50g unsalted butter, melted
300g honey
Ground nuts and freeze dried berries for decoration (optional)
METHOD
• Preheat the oven to 180 C (350 F)
• Start with the almond paste, you will use it to fill the mhencha. Transfer the almonds and sugar in a nut grinder or a food processor and run until it becomes a moist paste. This will take a bit of time, about 5 minutes. Add in the orange blossom and butter and run again for a few seconds. Remove the paste and divide it into 8 equal parts. Shape each part into long tubes (approximately 30 cm) and cover with cling film.
• Place a filo sheet on a work surface and brush it with melted butter (keep the other ones covered with a cloth to avoid from drying out). Take an almond paste tube, place it on the long side of a filo pastry and loosely roll up the sheet. Don’t be tempted to over-tighten the pastry when rolling it because it will break during the baking process. Cover the rolled almond paste with more melted butter and roll it up to form a snug coil. Place the mhencha onto a lined baking sheet and repeat until you’ve used all the almond paste and filo sheets. Transfer in the warm oven until they are baked and lightly golden, about 15 minutes
• Meanwhile, heat the honey in a small saucepan over medium heat. Avoid burning the honey by controlling the heat, once it’s foamy, you should reduce the heat.
• Once the pastries are baked, immediately transfer to the simmering honey and soak for 2 minutes. You will have to do this in batches as all the pastries won’t fit in the pan.
• Remove to a flat dish to cool before serving. Decorate with ground nuts and/or freeze dried berries if desired.