Ghraybeh

Name: Ghraybeh
Prep time: 29 min
Cook time: 65 min
Total time: 94 min
Yield: 10
Cuisine: Levantine
Ingredients: 1 cup Ghee or soft butter; 1/2 cup powdered sugar; 2.5 cups flour; 1/4 cup pistachios

White butter cookies that melt before you chew — the most delicate thing in a box of guest cookies.

Vegetarian

Cooking time: 1 hr 34 min
Hands-on time: 29 min
Free time: 30 min
Difficulty: Easy
Cuisine: Levantine
Calories: 520
Contains: Nuts, Gluten, Dairy

Ghraybeh is a test of simplicity: three ingredients and no more, for a pale white cookie that crumbles at a touch and melts in the mouth. Its whiteness is the mark of success — a tanned ghraybeh is a burnt ghraybeh.

Before you start

Before you beginRead the steps completely, measure the ingredients, and prepare the tools before turning on the fire or oven.
Heat and restingPrepare the ingredients precisely and allow the dessert time to cool or set before cutting.

Ingredients

10people

Amounts follow the number of people

To prepare ghraybeh

1 cup Ghee or soft butter — At room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar — fine white
2.5 cups flour — Sifted, then spooned lightly into the cup
1/4 cup pistachios — One on each cookie

When doubling the quantity, use two molds of the same size instead of one deep mold, and maintain an even thickness for cooking.

Equipment

Bowl and whisk — The ghee is beaten with icing sugar until pale and fluffy — that is ghraybeh.
Baking tray — A gentle oven at 160°; ghraybeh should not color.

Method

Beat the ghee with the powdered sugar until the mixture turns white and fluffy.
8 min
You’ll know it’s ready when
It is lighter in color, larger than what you started with, and has a creamy texture.
Tip: This step is the whole secret of ghraybeh — too little whisking gives a heavy cookie.
Add the sifted flour gradually and knead gently until a soft dough is formed.
6 min
You’ll know it’s ready when
It holds its shape between the palms of the hands and does not crack when pressed.
Tip: Knead as little as possible: overworking makes it lose its melting texture.
Cover the dough and let it rest in the refrigerator.
30 minYou can walk away
You’ll know it’s ready when
It is cool, firm, and does not stick to the hand.
Tip: Chilling it keeps the cookies from spreading in the oven.
Form small balls, flatten them slightly, and place a pistachio in the middle.
15 min
You’ll know it’s ready when
The discs are of equal size and have a smooth surface with no cracks on the edges.
Tip: Keep them the same size so they all bake together.
Bake at 160°C on the middle shelf.
15 minYou can walk away
You’ll know it’s ready when
It remains perfectly white and the base holds firm — the shortbread never browns.
Tip: If it starts to take on color, the temperature is too high: lower it immediately.
Leave it to cool in the tray without moving it before lifting it out.
20 minYou can walk away
You’ll know it’s ready when
It holds together perfectly and is lifted whole without crumbling.
Tip: Warm, it breaks between your fingers — you have to be patient here.