Simit: From Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook & Art Gallery

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Simit These dry biscuits with sesame seeds are sold by street vendors throughout the Middle East. In Turkey, Kandil Simidi are included on the table spread for Kandil Geceleri — celebrations of the Prophet's conception, birthday, Ascent, the revelation of his mission, and the Night of Power — when the mosques are lit throughout the night.
Total time: 2 hours Dough preparation: 45 minutes Baking: 30 minutes Cooling: 45 minutes Dough 3-¼ cups all purpose flour ¾ tsp. salt 2-¼ tsp. baking powder ¾ cup (1-½ sticks) unsalted butter ¾ cup olive oil 6 tbsp. milk 1 large egg 6 tbsp. water Topping Milk or lightly beaten egg Sesame seeds
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the butter, olive, milk, egg, and water. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid. Stir together to form a soft dough. Dust your hands with flour and roll walnut-sized pieces of dough into "snakes," 8" long by ½" thick. Fold each snake in half and twist it along its length. As you wish, pinch together the ends of each "snake" to form a circle, or leave them straight. Place them an inch apart on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush them with the milk or egg, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and bake on the center rack of the oven for a half-hour, or until golden. Cool them on wire racks and store in a tightly closed container. Serve with tea or coffee, yogurt, cheese or jam. Makes 24 simit. from Serving the Guest: A Sufi Cookbook Copyright © 1999, 2000 by Kathleen Seidel Sources of previously published material by other authors used by permission, and print sources for images, may be found at http://www.superluminal.com/cookbook.