Kekhke Քեխկէ

Kekhe is a crumbly Easter cookie, I crave year-round. As a child, I vividly remember helping my grandmother to egg wash each of the cookies in anticipation of the Easter Bunny.

Ingredients:

7 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

16oz (1 pack) of softened unsalted butter

1 cup milk mixed with 1 teaspoon of mahlab

1 cup of vegetable oil

1 whole egg

1 egg white

Sesame Seeds

Black Nigella Seeds

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C). In a bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, ensuring everything is well incorporated. In a separate large bowl, combine the milk mixture, sugar, oil,

and eggs, then beat until the sugar is fully dissolved. Add the butter to the liquid mixture and mix until combined (my grandmother does this step by hand).

Once the butter is fully incorporated, gradually add the dry mixture to the wet ingredients, mixing until a firm, buttery dough forms. Take uniform chunks of the dough and roll them into log shapes. You can either form each log into a circle, resembling a small donut, or braid the dough, as is traditional.

Place all the cookies onto an ungreased baking pan and generously brush them with an egg wash. While the egg wash is still wet, sprinkle the cookies with sesame seeds and nigella seeds. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the cookies turn golden brown.

Enjoy!