AI-generated image
Ranginak
Ranginak (رنگینک): walnut-stuffed dates under toasted butter flour
Ranginak is the date sweet of the south, made in Shiraz, Bushehr and Kerman in late summer when the new dates arrive and served in squares with bitter tea, and also at mourning gatherings and Ramadan iftar. Soft dates are stuffed with walnuts, packed into a dish and covered with flour slowly toasted in butter until it smells of biscuits, then dusted with cinnamon and pistachio. A common mistake is toasting the flour on too high a heat: it scorches before it turns nutty, so stir it patiently over a low flame. Chef's tip: use soft, moist dates such as Kabkab or Medjool; dry dates go hard once the butter sets.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 10
Ingredients
- 1 ⅛ lb soft datesabout 30, pitted
- 3 ½ oz walnut halveslightly toasted
- 5 ½ oz unsalted butter or ghee
- 4 oz plain flour
- 2 tbsp icing sugar
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tbsp ground pistachios
Shop this recipe on Amazon
Spices & pantry
Links open Amazon in a new tab. As an Amazon Associate, WhatToEat.Today earns from qualifying purchases.
Method
0/4 doneStep 1: Slit each of the 1 ⅛ lb soft dates and push a piece of 3 ½ oz walnut halves inside, then press closed. Pack them tightly, seam down, in a 20 cm round or square dish.
15 minStep 2: Melt the 5 ½ oz unsalted butter or ghee in a frying pan over a low heat, add the 4 oz plain flour and stir constantly for 15–20 minutes, until it is the colour of peanut butter and smells toasty. Don't rush it; burnt flour tastes bitter.
18 minStep 3: Take off the heat and stir in the 2 tbsp icing sugar and ½ tsp ground cardamom. Pour the hot mixture evenly over the dates, filling the gaps, and smooth with the back of a spoon.
3 minStep 4: Dust with 1 tsp ground cinnamon in lines and scatter with 2 tbsp ground pistachios. Leave at room temperature for 2–3 hours until set firm, then cut into squares. Keeps a week in an airtight box.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 42 g
- Fat
- 18 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ranginak take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 10 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of unsalted butter or ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Kartoshka cake
Soviet cafés and school canteens sold these knobbly brown 'potatoes' for a few kopecks, and they began as a thrifty way to use up sponge and biscuit trimmings at the bakery. Crumbs are bound with butter and sweetened condensed milk, flavoured with cocoa and vanilla, shaped into little potatoes, rolled in cocoa and finished with two dabs of pale butter cream for the sprouts. They are fudgy and dense like a brownie truffle, need no oven, and children love making them. Traditional bakers added a spoonful of rum, an optional extra for adult batches only; this version is alcohol-free with vanilla. The usual slip is coarse crumbs, which make the potatoes crack, so blitz them as fine as sand. Chef's tip: chill the shaped potatoes for at least 20 minutes so they hold their shape and slice cleanly.
Russian
Undu walalu
Walalu means bangles, and these dark, sticky rings of fried urad dal soaked in kithul treacle are a sweet that Sinhala families bring out for Avurudu and for special almsgivings, often made in large batches by an aunt known for her steady hand. A thick, fluffy paste of ground black gram is piped into loops and fried until crisp, then plunged straight into warm treacle, so the rings stay crunchy on the outside while drinking up the syrup. They taste a little like a darker, smokier jalebi, with a toffee finish from the palm treacle. Watery batter is what ruins them; it spreads into flat blobs, so grind the soaked dal with as little water as possible and beat it until light. This recipe uses no asafoetida, so it is naturally gluten free. Chef's tip: pipe the rings onto small squares of baking paper and lower them into the oil paper and all; the paper peels away in seconds.
Sri Lankan
Baklava
The famous layered pastry: crisp sheets of buttered fillo sandwich a filling of almonds, pistachios and cashews spiced with cinnamon, cardamom and saffron. After baking, the hot baklava is soaked in a syrup of sugar, honey, lemon, rose and cardamom and decorated with almond and pistachio flakes. Cut into 40 diamonds; serve with fresh cream or ice cream.