Namaste!
I recently found an old but interesting recipe for cakes with anise. You can bake both sweet and salty versions. But first, a little general information about this spice
- It is believed that the homeland of anis is Lebanon. From here, anise spread to Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. At that time, the taste qualities of anise were not valued as highly as medicinal and even mystical.
- Anise was used for epilepsy, paralysis, cough and for general health improvement. The authors of ancient Eastern books recommended chewing anise for strength and beauty of teeth and fresh breath.
- Romans regularly used anise in food, sprinkling its seeds on bread, to support health and rejuvenation.
- At banquets, the Greeks and Romans made sure to eat their meals with anise cakes, so that the abundant fatty food would not harm the stomach.
- Anise was also attributed with the magical property of driving away nightmares: boiled anise was prescribed at night against bad dreams and a melancholy mood, and the shoots of the wonderful plant were tied near the bed.
- The British were the first to actively use anise , and the classic recipes of English gingerbread necessarily contained anise in their composition.
- Anise was very popular in England. London chronicles say that the bridge over the Thames was built with taxes collected from the sale of anise.
And now, in fact, an easy recipe for
ANIS COOKIES
Ingredients:
300 g of flour to your taste
100 g of chopped coconut/ regular sugar
90 g melted coconut/any – any vegetable oil
1 tsp. baking powder for dough
2 tbsp. anise seeds
2 tbsp. white sesame
2 eggs
a pinch of salt
- Lightly beat eggs with sugar, add oil, anise, sesame seeds
- Sift flour with baking powder and salt
- Combine the egg mixture with flour, knead the dough.
- Wrap it in film, put it in the freezer for half an hour
- Divide the dough into pieces, from each piece make “sausages” as thick as a finger and cut them into small cakes. Or roll out the dough into a thick pancake and use molds to squeeze out cookies.
- Bake for 20 minutes in a preheated oven at a temperature of 180-200°C.
Anise cakes with sesame — Tasty and useful!
