Qurabiya (also ghraybe, ghorayeba, ghoriba ( ar, غريبة), ghribia, ghraïba, or ghriyyaba and numerous other spellings and pronunciations) is a

shortbread Shortbread or shortie is a traditional Scottish biscuit usually made from one part white sugar, two parts butter, and three to four parts plain wheat flour. Unlike many other biscuits and baked goods, shortbread does not contain any leavening, ...

-type biscuit, usually made with ground almonds. Versions are found in most

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

and Ottoman cuisines, with various different forms and recipes. They are similar to polvorones from

Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain. It is the most populous and the second-largest autonomous community in the country. It is officially recognised as a "historical nationality". The t ...

. In the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...

and

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

, they are often served with

Libyan tea Libyan tea is a strong beverage, prepared with traditional set of stainless utensils and served in a small glass cups. It is similar to Moroccan tea in prepared by boiling loose tea leaves but differ in presentation. Libyan tea is usually served i ...

, Arabic coffee or

Maghrebi mint tea Maghrebi mint tea (Maghrebi Arabic: , ''atay''; ar, الشاي بالنعناع, aš-šhāy bin-na'nā'; ), also known as Moroccan mint tea and Algerian mint tea, is a North African green tea prepared with spearmint leaves and sugar. It is ...

History

A recipe for a shortbread cookie similar to ghorayebah but without almonds, called in Arabic (exotic cookie), is given in the earliest known Arab cookbook, the 10th-century '' Kitab al-Ṭabīḫ''. ''Kurabiye'' appears in the Ottoman cuisine in the 15th century. There is some debate about the origin of the words. Some give no other origin for the Turkish word ''kurabiye'' than Turkish, while others have given Arabic or Persian. Among others, linguist

Sevan Nişanyan Sevan Nişanyan ( hyw, Սեւան Նշանեան; born 21 December 1956) is a Turkish-Armenian writer and linguist. An author of a number of books ("The Wrong Republic", "The Etymological Dictionary" and others), Nişanyan was awarded the Ayşe ...

has given an Arabic origin, in his 2009 book of Turkish etymology, from ' or ' (exotic). However, as of 2019, Nişanyan's online dictionary now gives the earliest known recorded use in Turkish as the late 17th century, with an origin from the

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

', a cookie made with

rose water Rose water ( fa, گلاب) is a flavoured water made by steeping rose petals in water. It is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals, a by-product of the production of rose oil for use in perfume. Rose water is also used to fla ...

, from ', related to flowers. He notes that the Syrian Arabic words ''/'' likely derive from the Turkish.

Regional variations

Algeria

Ghribia ( arq, غريبية) * Ghribia with almonds * Ghribia with

peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small and ...

s * Ghribia with

walnuts A walnut is the edible seed of a drupe of any tree of the genus ''Juglans'' (family Juglandaceae), particularly the Persian or English walnut, ''Juglans regia''. Although culinarily considered a "nut" and used as such, it is not a true bot ...

* Ghribia with

pistachios The pistachio (, ''Pistacia vera''), a member of the cashew family, is a small tree originating from Central Asia and the Middle East. The tree produces seeds that are widely consumed as food. ''Pistacia vera'' is often confused with other spe ...

Armenia

Khourabia () is the Armenian version sometimes referred to in English as Armenian butter cookie or Armenian shortbread cookie. Khourabia was traditionally made with three ingredients: butter, sugar, and flour and usually shaped like bread, wheat ear, or horse shoe signifying health, wealth, and prosperity. It was mostly eaten during the Easter, Christmas, and New Year celebrations. Later, more ingredients were added, like eggs, cinnamon, and walnuts.

Bulgaria

Kurabii name of the Bulgarian cuisine and the many varieties of cookie, a popular sweet variety. Especially during the holiday season, and a variety of jams produced via the new year with powdered sugar cookies decorated with cute shapes are called maslenki.

Cyprus & Greece

The Greek version, called ''kourabiedes'' or ''kourabiethes'' ( el, κουραμπιέδες; plural of ''kourabies'' ), resembles a light

, typically made with almonds. Kourabiedes are sometimes made with brandy, usually

Metaxa Metaxa ( el, Μεταξά) is a Greek amber spirit created by Spyros Metaxa in 1888. Its taste comes from the combination of Muscat wines from the island of Samos, aged wine distillates, and Mediterranean botanicals. The Metaxa Collection cons ...

, for flavouring, though

vanilla Vanilla is a spice derived from orchids of the genus ''Vanilla (genus), Vanilla'', primarily obtained from pods of the Mexican species, flat-leaved vanilla (''Vanilla planifolia, V. planifolia''). Pollination is required to make the p ...

mastika Mastika or mastiha is a liqueur seasoned with mastic, a resin with a slightly pine or cedar-like flavor gathered from the mastic tree, a small evergreen tree native to the Mediterranean region. In Greece, mastiha ( el, μαστίχα) or masti ...

are also popular. In some regions of Greece, Christmas kourabiedes are adorned with a single whole spice clove embedded in each biscuit. Kourabiedes are shaped either into crescents or balls, then baked till slightly golden. They are usually rolled in icing sugar while still hot, forming a rich butter-sugar coating. Kourabiedes are especially popular for special occasions, such as

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

s. though they are popular all year round. The Greek word comes from the Turkish word ''kurabiye'', which is related to qurabiya, a family of Middle Eastern cookies.

Iran

Tabriz Tabriz ( fa, تبریز ; ) is a city in northwestern Iran, serving as the capital of East Azerbaijan Province. It is the List of largest cities of Iran, sixth-most-populous city in Iran. In the Quri Chay, Quru River valley in Iran's historic Aze ...

, they are made of

almond flour Almond meal, almond flour or ground almond is made from ground sweet almonds. Almond flour is usually made with blanched almonds (no skin), whereas almond meal can be made with whole or blanched almonds. The consistency is more like corn meal th ...

, sugar, egg white,

, margarine and pistachio. It is served with tea, customarily placed on top of the teacup to make it soft before eating. A Box of Qurabiya by Nobari Confectionary (Tehran, Iran)

A Box of Qurabiya by Nobari Confectionary (Tehran, Iran)

Kuwait

Variants including: * Ghoriba with

Cardamom Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are r ...

* Ghoriba with pistachio * Ghoriba with

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in ...

Levant

* Ghoriba with pistachio * Ghoriba with

Rose water Rose water ( fa, گلاب) is a flavoured water made by steeping rose petals in water. It is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals, a by-product of the production of rose oil for use in perfume. Rose water is also used to fla ...

Libya

Ghraïba Libyan Arabic translation : , غربية * Ghoriba with peanuts * Ghoriba with almonds *Ghoriba with walnuts

Morocco

Ghoriba (

Moroccan Arabic Moroccan Arabic ( ar, العربية المغربية الدارجة, translit=al-ʻArabīya al-Maghribīya ad-Dārija ), also known as Darija (), is the dialectal, vernacular form or forms of Arabic spoken in Morocco. It is part of the Maghreb ...

: ) in Morocco and other parts of the

, the popular cookies often use

semolina Semolina is coarsely milled durum wheat mainly used in making couscous, and sweet puddings. The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or corn) as well. Ety ...

instead of white flour, giving a distinctive crunch. the original Ghriba is made from flour and flavored with lemon or orange zest and cinnamon, this sweet is usually served at parties, accompanied by mint tea or coffee. * Mlouwza, made with almonds and sugar flavored with orange flower water * Ghoriba bahla * Ghoriba dyal zite * Ghoriba mramla

Turkey

The word ''kurabiye'' is used to refer to a variety of biscuits in Turkey, not necessarily local ones, although various types of local ''kurabiye'' are made; including '' acıbadem kurabiyesi'' and ''un kurabiyesi''.

Tunisia

Ghraïba ( aeb, غريبة) * Ghraïba bidha, made with

wheat flour Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. Wheat varieties are called "soft" or "weak" if gluten content is low, and are called "hard" or "strong" if they have high gluten content. Hard flour, or ''bread ...

* Ghraïba droô, made with sorghum flour * Ghraïba homs, made with

chickpea flour Gram flour or kadala maavu is a pulse flour made from a variety of ground chickpea called Bengal gram or ''kaala chana''. It is a staple ingredient in the cuisine of the Indian subcontinent, including in Indian, Bangladeshi, Burmese, Nepali ...

References

{{Nut confections Almond cookies Azerbaijani desserts Bosnia and Herzegovina cuisine Bulgarian desserts Christmas food Iranian desserts Shortbread Tabriz cuisine Armenian desserts Turkish desserts Arab desserts