Asabe’e Zainab

October 22nd, 2010

Dimah - http://www.orangeblossomwater.net - Asabe' Zainab 7

Asabe’e Zainab or Swabe’e Zainab (means Zainab’s fingers) is a middle eastern dessert. A dough is prepared by mixing (flour, semolina, sugar, yeast, salt, ghee and water), and a grater is used to give the pieces of the dough the popular shape of Asabe’e Zainab , then deep fried in hot oil and dipped in cold sugar syrup.

Let’s make Asabe’e Zainab:

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1, 2. Combine flour, fine semolina, sugar, instant yeast and salt in a bowl.

3. Add melted ghee, and water.

4. Mix until combine and knead until all the ingredients come together.

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5. Take small piece of dough.

6. Form the piece of the dough into a shape similar to dates.

7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12. By your finger press the piece of the dough into the sharp side of the grater and roll it.

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13, 14. Spots will be created by the grater on the piece of the dough.

15, 16. Make all the quantity of the dough, and let the pieces rest for about 10 minutes (I didn’t keep them to rest for 10 minutes because they had already rested while working with all the quantity).

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17, 18. Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown in color.

19, 20. Dip in cold sugar syrup, then remove them.

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21. Serve.

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Asabe’e Zainab

From: Chef Osama / Servings: About 30 – 35 Pieces
PDF Text Only / Print With Images

1 1/8 cups all purpose flour

1/8 cup semolina flour
(smid farkha)

1/2 tbsp sugar

1/4 tbsp instant yeast

1/8 tsp salt

2 tbsp + 2 tsp ghee, melted and
cooled

6 to 8 tbsp lukewarm water

Corn oil, for frying

Sugar syrup, for dipping



Combine flour, fine semolina, sugar, instant yeast and salt in a bowl.

Add melted ghee, and water.

Mix until combine and knead until all the ingredients come together.

Take small piece of dough.

Form the piece of the dough into a shape similar to dates.

By your finger press the piece of the dough into the sharp side of the grater and roll it.

Spots will be created by the grater on the piece of the dough.

Make all the quantity of the dough, and let the pieces rest for about 10 minutes (I didn’t keep them to rest for 10 minutes because they had already rested while working with all the quantity).

Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown in color.

Dip in cold sugar syrup, then remove them

Serve.

Notes and Tips

I added 7 tbsp of lukewarm water to the dough.

You can flavor the dough by adding cinnamon powder, or anise powder.

For dipping Asabe’e Zainab in sugar syrup, you have to notice these notes:
I made the sugar syrup similar to the recipe (Sugar Syrup).
Sugar syrup for dipping Asabe’e Zainab should be cold, because the basic rule is:
Cold sugar syrup is added to hot desserts.
Hot sugar syrup is added to cold desserts.

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49 Responses to “Asabe’e Zainab”

  1. Cherine says:

    In Lebanon we call this maakroun! Mom used to make them. Yours look wonderful!!

  2. You make these so well~ in Lebanon we call them macaroons and they are heavily flavored with anise. So good with that Turkish coffee there!

  3. Hannah says:

    I’ve never had a dessert quite like this before, but it sounds like another tasty twist on the classic yeast-raised donut, which only promises good things. :)

  4. Adelina says:

    My family makes a dessert similar to this too. Thanks for sharing.

  5. eatgreek.net says:

    they look soooo yummy!!!!! :D

  6. Umm Mymoonah says:

    Hmm yumm yumm, looks so tempting. I tried your kibbeh came out really well, we all loved it.

  7. love this type of snack looks delicious

  8. Looks perfect and really delicious!

  9. these look fantastic. it reminds me of something my grandma used to make for us. any deep fried dough sounds good to me. i am going to save this recipe. thank you for sharing. have a nice weekend.

  10. Roxan says:

    Fried dough? I can totally go for some of that. Ingenious method for texturizing the dough!

  11. Tanvi says:

    guess what I was commenting on ur blog just when u commented on mine :)
    This looks soooo yummy..perfect finger food and the name also says fingers.
    Thats so damn cool to use a hand grater to make a design…I really love the color and look of those cute sweet nibbles:)

  12. Coffeebeans says:

    It looks very good! Do you think I could use for this dessert some orange blossom water? I bought a bottle from Belgium but I don’t have any recipe for it yet…
    Thanks! Have a nice day!

  13. Susi says:

    I have never been introduced to this dessert but they look and sound amazing! Thank you for sharing :o)

  14. Raina says:

    These look so delicious. This is something I know I would love. Thank you for the excellent instruction too. That is really helpful. Looking forward to trying these:)

  15. Lovely dish. Snaps are great. Thanks for visiting.

  16. Reeni says:

    This is a new dish for me – one that I would love to try. It’s very unique and special!

  17. I bet these just melt in your mouth. I could probably eat a dozen.

  18. grazi says:

    superbe!!!

  19. Peggy says:

    These look wonderful! I would definitely have a hard time keeping away from these and not eating them all at once!

  20. These look delightful! And an act of love to make. I want to try them.

  21. Pam says:

    This looks great to me, so delicious, I’m sure! And very interesting with the grater for design and texture. Way to go!

  22. O, my husband would go nuts for these! They look so crisp and airy!

  23. Swathi says:

    Dimah,

    These dessert looks cute and delicious. I like idea of using the grater to make designs.

    Thanks for visiting my blog. I love middle eastern food. Sure following you to find more recipes.

  24. Claudia says:

    This is absolutely exquisite. Somehow they look light – even with the deep frying. Gorgeous blog. Must follow!

  25. That’s so clever using the grater to make the pretty patterns! :D

  26. fooddreamer says:

    Seems like every culture has their version of fried dough…from donuts to these little treats you made. I love the little spots created by the grater.
    BTW, I tagged you over on my blog, I don’t know if you saw that.

  27. GreenGirl says:

    sounds like small Turkish glazed donuts which are awesome, thanks for the recipe, I’ll definitely try it

  28. ohoh, these fingers look crunchy and delicious. I would love a cup of qahwa, too :-)

  29. Simply Life says:

    I’ve never seen this dessert before -thanks for sharing!

  30. tigerfish says:

    THis is new to me! Thanks for sharing.

  31. rebecca says:

    wow these look tasty love Middle Eastern food, thanks so much for visiting my blog

    rebecca

  32. Becky says:

    You have received a lovely award. Please check out my blog:)

    thank you,
    Becky

  33. These treats just look so tasty and delicious. The tea I am drinking now seems like it is missing the company of just such an addition to make it perfect.

  34. Dimah says:

    Cherine: Thanks for the lovely comment. I know that in some countries it is known as “macaron” but I preferred not to mention that because the name is similar to American Macaroon or French Macaron, some letters in Arabic can’t be written as pronounced like letter “E’in” which is in the word “Ma’caron”.

    tasteofbeirut: Thank you, actually this is “Arabic coffee” not Turkish coffee because it is served in the special cups of Arabic coffee, also it is not qahwa merra, it is “Emarati coffee” :)

    Hannah: Thanks for stopping by!

    Adelina: Thanks!

    eatgreek.net: Thank you!

    Umm Mymoonah: Thanks for visiting! and thanks for letting my know that you made kibbeh and you enjoyed it :)

    torviewtoronto: Thanks!

    blackbookkitchendiaries: Thank you so much! I love deep fried dough, many desserts in middle east are deep fried dough, yum!

    Roxan: Thank you!

    Tanvi: Thank you so much for stopping by and for the comment! You are so kind :)

    Coffeebeans: Thanks! you can add few drops of orange blossom water to the sugar syrup :)

    Susi: Thanks!

    Raina: Thanks! hope you try them :)

    Gayathri Kumar: Thanks!

    Reeni: Thanks for the kind comment!

    Lisa~Korean American Mommy: Thanks, I think you will eat a dozen :)

    grazi: Thanks!

    Peggy: Thank you!

    Rosemary @ Sprigs of Rosemary: Thanks, hope you try them :)

    Pam: Thanks!

    Sommer @ A Spicy Perspective: Thanks! hope you try them :)

    Swathi: Thanks! hope you enjoy the blog and the recipes :)

    Claudia: Thank you!

    Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella: Thanks for stopping by!

    fooddreamer: Thanks!

    GreenGirl: Thanks!

    Sweet Artichoke: Thank you!

    Simply Life: Thanks!

    tigerfish: Thanks!

    rebecca: Thanks for visiting!

    Becky: Thanks for the award, you are so kind :)

    OysterCulture: Thanks for the lovely comment!

  35. zerrin says:

    This is one of our favorite desserts. We call it vezir parmagi in Turkish which means vizier’s finger. Yours look fantastic!

  36. sameena says:

    Hi Dimah,

    That looks so yummm….:)

    Dr.Sameena@

    http://www.myeasytocookrecipes.blogspot.com

  37. Rosa says:

    Mmmmhhh, I love deep-fried treats! Those “fingers” look so good.

    Cheers,

    Rosa

  38. Tracy says:

    Looks delicious!

  39. Hi,
    I have had Asabe Zainab a few times but when u buy them, usually contain rose water n i dont like that taste in my food! but since this is without essence, i’m sure it will be very tastey =) Actually, i have been trying to put u on my blogroll but the link is not working =( is there some issue?

  40. What a lovely middle eastern dessert. Thanks for sharing!

  41. Joyti says:

    Those look very unique and delicious. They remind me of certain Indian desserts…in that they’re fried then dipped into a syrup.

  42. suchitra says:

    well made and really looks great

  43. Dimah says:

    Zerrin: Thanks, dear! love the Turkish name ;)

    sameena: Thanks for stopping by!

    Rosa: Thank you!

    Tracy: Thanks!

    cardamom hills: Thanks! the sugar syrup is flavored with rose water, rose water is strong, If I’m going to add it to my syrup, I’ll add few drops only. The feed is not working probably, sorry for the inconvenience :(

    Ellie (Almost Bourdain): Thank you!

    Joyti: Thanks!

    suchitra: Thanks!

  44. wow that looks supeb…very tempting…

  45. Mateja says:

    Thnx so much! have been looking for a proper Asaba’ Zainab recipe for quite some time now. My husband is a big fan of this delicious Arabic sweet. We just had some with a cup of coffee and they were a huge success!!!!!!. Thnx again ^_^

    If you have time stop by my blog site http://indulginglife.blogspot.com

  46. Dimah says:

    Sushma Mallya: Thanks!

    Mateja: Thank you so much for letting me know! I’m glad you like it :)

  47. Food Lover says:

    Looks great, nice blog you have here :)

  48. Laila says:

    This recipe is mouthwatering. I’ve done it twice with my mother this Ramadan and she really enjoyed it as well as my family members. This will be my go to Asabe Zainab recipe from now on. Jazaka Allahu Kheiran Dimah!

    • Dimah says:

      Laila: I’m so glad to hear you enjoyed these and that they turned out so well for you. Thank you so much for stopping by and for your kind words, your comment made my day ♡♡♡
      Ramadan Kareem and greetings to your Mom.