Moroccan Ghriba Cookies -

5 from 2 votes

Moroccan Ghriba Cookies

These deliciously chewy Moroccan ghriba cookies with walnuts and cinnamon are lightly sweet, rolled in powdered sugar, and baked until crackly.

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time25

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Moroccan

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: cookies

Calories: 137kcal

2 ¼ cups walnut pieces coarsely ground in a food processor to form a meal. You can grind them longer to make them finer but be careful not to overprocess them because they can turn into walnut butter.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
1 large egg
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons oat flour or all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup powdered sugar sifted

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the 2 tablespoons unsalted butter and 1 large egg together until combined. Beat in the ¼ cup granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, 3 tablespoons oat flour, 3 tablespoons oat flourand 1 teaspoon baking powder. Beat in the ground 2 ¼ cups walnut pieces.
Place the bowl in the fridge and chill for at least 30 minutes.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350° F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place 1 cup powdered sugar in a bowl.
Remove the dough from the fridge and roll into 1-inch balls. Roll in powdered sugar and place on the baking sheet about 1 inch apart. Place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and cool the pan set on a wire rack until set. Dust the cookies with more powdered sugar before serving if you like.

Don't over-process the nuts. It's a fine line between ground walnuts and walnut butter. Make sure not to overdo it in the food processor. You want the walnuts to retain some texture - this gives the ghriba that lovely chewy vibe.
Cool the cookies completely. Note that the cookies will still be a bit soft when pulled from the oven. Cool them for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. They will firm as they cool.
Leave off the powdered sugar. I love the hint of extra sweetness the powdered sugar brings. However, for a less-sweet cookie, you can skip rolling them in sugar before baking.
Try another sugar. As noted above, swapping the sugar for honey is so nice in this recipe! For another sweetener option, try coconut sugar or brown sugar.