Morocco Eid Al-Kabir

Eid Al-Adha, called in Morocco Eid Al-Kabir, refers to ‘The Great Eid’ and is a famous and religious festival that is celebrated all over the Islamic world. It is celebrated on the tenth of Dhou Al-hijja each lunar year of the Islamic calendar.

Religiously speaking, the root of this festival goes back to Abramham, who is deemed the father of all the Abrahamic religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Abraham saw in a dream God reveling to him that he should sacrifice his son Ishmael. He took his son to the mountain far from his mother so as to achieve God’s promise. As soon as Abraham put the knife on his son’s neck to slaughter him, God called him loudly from the seventh sky to take back his command. Then, God substituted Ishmael with a sheep. In Christianity and Judaism, Abraham’s son who would have been slaughtered was Isaac. Anyhow, this was just short summary of the story behind the Great Eid that is to be celebrated in the next few days.

The sacrifice is Sunna of the Prophet Mohammed. It was legitimated by God, through the Prophet, as an offer for forgiveness of sins and for getting closer to God’s mercy. The sacrifice is not circumscribed to just sheep, as the majority of people understand. However, the sacrifice is of Halal animals more broadly, that can be slaughtered on the Great Eid in order to approach the Almighty God. It must be done under certain conditions and at a specific time and place. Therefore, it should be kept in mind that the sheep is not the only animal that can be slaughtered in the Great Eid; other animals too, such as the camel, cow, and goat can be sacrificed. Thus, there is no requirement to perform the Eid only with sheep; other choices are religiously and economically acceptable. All of them have one result: to bring closeness to God.

In Morocco, the Great Eid has taken social, economic, and customary dimensions. When the Eid draws near its fixed day, families and individuals start seeking the suitable sheep to sacrifice. Despite the fact that the slaughter is not mandatory upon those who cannot come up with the money for it, several poor families borrow money in order to buy a sheep or goat for the Eid.

In the Moroccan cities sheep is the most common animal that is slaughtered, while in the villages the goat is the animal that is most commonly slaughtered. In the morning of the Great Eid, Muslims dress up their Jellaba and Jabador or put on the best attire available, and they go to the mosque or to the Mussala (an open-air space outside the cities and villages) in order to make the prayer of Eid.

After they pray, they perform the sacrifice ritual. In the evening of the Eid, families visit each other. The Great Eid is the day of happiness when families have various ways of cooking delicious dishes of meat based on their traditions. This religious holiday goes on for three days.

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Most Popular Moroccan Desserts Recipes

Most Popular Moroccan Desserts Recipes

Moroccan soups are tasty and fortifying and are accompanied during Ramadan with an assortment of sugary sweets to boost energy levels after a day of fasting  The Ramadan fast is broken with harira a lentil and tomato based soup. dates and dried figs and  chebakia, which are flower-shaped cookies soaked in honey and sprinkled with sesame seeds. Sweets are an integral part of the social aspect of Ramadan and the ftour meal.

Stuffed Dates include Orange flower water and cinnamon which are used to flavor the almond paste filling. Makrout with Dates and Honey is another special occasion sweet which is popular in Ramadan. A mild date paste is enclosed in a log of semolina dough, then the  cookies are sliced, fried and dipped in honey.

Almond Briouats are made by folding almond paste flavored with orange flower water and cinnamon within warqa dough. The pastries are fried and then soaked briefly in honey.  Cheese briouats are foiled with cream cheese filling. Herbs or hot peppers can be added for more flavor.

Hssoua Belboua is barley soup with milk. It combines barley grits with milk to yield a rich, creamy soup that’s both nutritious and satisfying.  There is also Semolina soup with milk, anise seeds and honey.

After the soup comes a variety of breads such as msemen and rghayif (layered flatbreads cooked in a skillet); puffed, pita breadlike rounds called batbout; and perhaps some harcha, an unleavened flatbread, sometimes made with cornmeal. Arrayed with them on the table are marmalades, butter, and cheeses, often including the fresh cheese jben. There are bowls of olives and others of hard-boiled eggs, which are peeled and then dipped in ground cumin or black pepper. Moroccans living along the Atlantic coast will also serve fried fish, usually sardines.

Another  favorite are triangular or cylindrical phyllo briouats. Briouats, are pan-fried—not baked—to golden deliciousness. Some are savory, stuffed with fresh cheese and finished with a drizzle of honey, while others are sweet, filled with crushed almonds, sugar, and spices.

Sweets reappear at the end of the ftour meal. Platters are piled with cookies, among them twice-baked Moroccan Tea Biscuits known as fekkas with their lovely scent of orange-flower water.”Treats such as m’hanncha, called “snake cake” for its concentric circles, are another representative dessert. Dates reappear on the table, this time stuffed, often with a homemade almond paste.

Sellou is a  Moroccan sweet  served during Ramadan made from toasted sesames, fried almonds and flour that has been browned in the oven.

For More Information on Moroccan Ramadan Sweets and Islamic Holidays

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Almond Briouats are made by folding almond paste flavored with orange flower water and cinnamon within warqa dough. The pastries are fried and then soaked briefly in honey.  Cheese briouats are foiled with cream cheese filling. Herbs or hot peppers can be added for more flavor.
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Moroccan Desserts, Cookies, Pastries and Sweets

Moroccan Desserts, Cookies, Pastries and Sweets
Fresh fruit is the traditional ending to a Moroccan meal, but you'll want to have lots of Moroccan cookies and pastries on hand to go with afternoon tea or coffee. From rich almond pastries like m'hencha to crunchy biscotti-like fekkas, there's sure to be a traditional Moroccan cookie recipe to satisfy your sweet tooth.
The French introduced waffles (gaufres) to Morocco, where you can find them in bakeries or sold by vendors as a snack or street food. Instead of syrup, they're often served with a dusting of powdered sugar, whipped cream or a drizzle of chocolate sauce or Nutella.

Waffles are quite easy to make at home, which is really the best way to enjoy these tasty batter cakes. Consider replacing all or some of the white flour with whole wheat flour. If offering the waffles as a base for a savory topping, omit the vanilla and reduce the sugar to 1 or 2 teaspoons.

The recipe calls for folding beaten egg whites into the batter; this yields a lighter textured waffle. If you prefer a denser waffle, simply use the whole eggs when mixing the wet ingredients.

Note that the yield may vary according to your waffle iron. Serve the waffles for breakfast, tea time or when breaking the fast in Ramadan.

For other French-influenced tea time or breakfast treats, also try the Crepes or Beignets recipes.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Yield: 8 waffles, approx. 4" x 6"

Ingredients:

3 eggs, separated
250 g (2 cups) all purpose flour
2 to 3 tablespoons sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
85 g (6 tablespoons) melted butter or vegetable oil
355 ml (1 1/2 cups) milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Preparation:

Beat the egg whites with an electric whisk until stiff. Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat together the egg yolks, melted butter, milk and vanilla. Add the flour mixture and stir just until well-blended, but not smooth. The batter will be lumpy; this is okay.

With a rubber spatula, gently fold the beaten egg whites into the batter until evenly incorporated.

Preheat your waffle iron. When ready, spoon batter onto the iron and cook the waffles until golden brown. Serve as the waffles come off the iron, or transfer the waffles to a rack to cool. Note that the waffles will soften and lose their crisp exterior as they cool.

To warm and crisp cooled waffles, preheat your oven to 350° F (180° C). Place the waffles directly on the oven rack, not in a pan, and heat just until hot to the touch, about 2 minutes. Serve immediately with toppings of your choice.
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