🌴 Madgooga
Madgooga is a traditional Saudi date sweet made by pounding pitted dates with toasted sesame seeds, ghee and a little cardamom until they form a dense, chewy paste. It is pressed into a bowl or rolled into small balls and eaten in small pieces with Arabic coffee. Its taste is deeply sweet and nutty from the toasted sesame.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 400 g soft dates, pitted
- 60 g sesame seeds
- 40 g ghee
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
Method
- Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan until golden.
- Warm the ghee in the pan and add the dates, mashing them with a spoon.
- Add the cardamom and most of the sesame and pound or knead into a smooth paste.
- Press into a dish or roll into small balls and coat with the remaining sesame.
How to make it lighter
- Roll it into 20 g balls so each piece is easy to count.
- Use half the ghee; the dates still bind well.
- Enjoy one piece with coffee instead of several dates plus a sweet.
History
Madgooga, from the Arabic for 'pounded', is a home-made sweet of central and northern Saudi Arabia, where dates have long been a staple. It is still commonly served with Arabic coffee to guests and in winter.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →