Tender buttery date-filled kahk (Printer View)

Soft, buttery Middle Eastern kahk featuring a sweet date filling and sesame seed coating.

# Components:

→ Dough

01 - 3 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
03 - 1/2 cup powdered sugar
04 - 1/4 cup milk, plus additional as needed
05 - 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
06 - 1/4 teaspoon salt
07 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ Filling

08 - 1 cup pitted Medjool dates, chopped
09 - 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
10 - 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
11 - 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom, optional

→ Coating

12 - 1/2 cup sesame seeds, untoasted

# Method:

01 - Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
02 - In a large bowl, beat butter and powdered sugar together until light and fluffy.
03 - Add vanilla extract. Gradually mix in flour, baking powder, and salt until combined.
04 - Add milk one tablespoon at a time, kneading gently until a soft, pliable dough forms. Cover and rest.
05 - Combine chopped dates and butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir continuously until softened into a paste. Stir in cinnamon and cardamom. Let cool.
06 - Divide dough into 24 equal pieces. Flatten each into a disk in your palm.
07 - Place 1 teaspoon of date filling into the center of each disk. Fold dough over filling, seal, and roll gently into a ball.
08 - Roll each ball in sesame seeds, pressing lightly to ensure adhesion.
09 - Place cookies on prepared sheet. Flatten slightly with a fork or mold, creating decorative patterns if desired.
10 - Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until bottoms turn golden and tops remain pale.
11 - Allow cookies to cool completely on a wire rack before serving or storing.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • They're buttery and tender in a way that feels almost impossible—no grittiness, just melt-in-your-mouth softness that disappears the moment you bite down.
  • The date-and-cardamom filling tastes sophisticated and warm without being heavy, making them the perfect thing to offer when you want to impress someone without fuss.
  • You can make them ahead and they actually taste better the next day, so the stress of last-minute baking vanishes.
02 -
  • If your dough feels sticky or the cookies spread too much in the oven, you've added too much milk—the next batch, hold back and add it more cautiously, remembering that it's easier to add more than to remove it.
  • The moment you stop kneading and let the dough rest, the gluten relaxes and the dough becomes more forgiving, so if you're feeling frustrated with how it's behaving, cover it and walk away for five minutes.
  • Don't skip cooling the date filling—if it's still warm when you fill the cookies, the heat will soften the dough and you'll end up with cookies that don't hold their shape in the oven.
03 -
  • Keep your butter at exactly the right temperature by taking it out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before you start—it should be soft enough to indent with your finger, not so warm that it's starting to shine.
  • If you have access to a kahk mold, it's worth seeking out, because it creates those beautiful traditional patterns and makes you feel like you're part of something ancient the moment you press it down.
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