PERSIAN RICE COOKIES

FOR ROSE SYRUP:
3/4 sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp lemon juice
1/8 cup rose water
FOR THE COOKIES:
1 1/2 cups rice flour, plus more if required
1/2 cup melted ghee (melted clarified butter)
2 egg yolks plus 2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp cardamon powder
a handful of finely chopped pistas (pistachios) (plus more for garnish)

TO MAKE THE ROSE SYRUP:
In a saucepan, bring the sugar and water to a boil on med-low heat and simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in rose water and lemon juice. Cool to room temperature. The syrup should not be too thick.

TO MAKE THE COOKIES:
In a bowl, beat the yolks and 2 tsp sugar, add the ghee, cardamon powder and beat well. Stir in 1 1/2 cups rice flour and handful of finely chopped pistas. Add enough syrup to be able to form a dough (knead with hands) which doesnt stick to your hands. For that add more flour or more syrup, as required.

Make walnut sized balls of the dough, lightly flatten, place 1 inch apart on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes in a 350 degrees pre-heated oven. At the end of the baking time, the cookies should start to crack on top and turn white, which means they are done.

Don't handle the cookies until they cool for a bit. Then, sprinkle very finely chopped pistas over the top and lightly tap in place. Store in an airtight container only when completely cool.

Yield: 36 cookies
Adapted from s ource: New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies by Najmieh Batmanglij