Kâk with almonds and sesame, travel bread
Small rings of dry wheat dough, enriched with almonds and honey, perfumed with cinnamon and sesame. Crunchy, not fragile, they travel without damage and are dipped in tea or milk at the way station.
Small rings of dry wheat dough, enriched with almonds and honey, perfumed with cinnamon and sesame. Crunchy, not fragile, they travel without damage and are dipped in tea or milk at the way station.
He who travels the roads as I have knows that a man cannot feed on manuscripts. I would have a firm wheat dough kneaded with a little honey, pounded almonds, and cinnamon, shaped into rings and baked until hard. Thus dried, they do not spoil for weeks and sustain the traveler from Bukhara to Hamadan. A little sesame on top, and one breaks the journey's fast without weighing on the stomach.
- •Wheat flour — two large bowls (base of travel bread)
- •Pounded almonds — a handful (richness, energy)
- •Honey — one spoonful (sweetness, preservation)
- •Cinnamon and a little cardamom — to taste (travel spices)
- •Sesame seeds — a handful (crunchy decoration)
- •Oil and rose water — a little (binder, perfume)
Kâk with almonds and sesame, travel bread
Small rings of dry wheat dough, enriched with almonds and honey, perfumed with cinnamon and sesame. Crunchy, not fragile, they travel without damage and are dipped in tea or milk at the way station.
Why this dish? Avicenna spent his life on the road, fleeing political turmoil from Bukhara to Gurganj, then Hamadan and Isfahan. These dry almond ring-biscuits, which keep for weeks, are the kind of provision a wandering scholar would slip into his saddlebags alongside his manuscripts.
He who travels the roads as I have knows that a man cannot feed on manuscripts. I would have a firm wheat dough kneaded with a little honey, pounded almonds, and cinnamon, shaped into rings and baked until hard. Thus dried, they do not spoil for weeks and sustain the traveler from Bukhara to Hamadan. A little sesame on top, and one breaks the journey's fast without weighing on the stomach.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour — two large bowls (base of travel bread)
- Pounded almonds — a handful (richness, energy)
- Honey — one spoonful (sweetness, preservation)
- Cinnamon and a little cardamom — to taste (travel spices)
- Sesame seeds — a handful (crunchy decoration)
- Oil and rose water — a little (binder, perfume)
Ingredients
- Wheat flour — 300 g (base)
- Ground almonds — 80 g (richness)
- Honey — 3 tbsp (sweetness)
- Cinnamon + ground cardamom — 1 tsp + ½ tsp (spices)
- Neutral oil — 60 ml (binder)
- Rose water — 1 tbsp (perfume)
- Sesame seeds — 3 tbsp (coating)
- Water — about 80 ml (dough hydration)
Method
- Mix flour, almonds, and spices. Add honey, oil, rose water, then water little by little until a firm dough forms.
- Let rest 20 min, then shape into small ropes and close into rings.
- Roll each ring in sesame seeds.
- Bake at 170°C for 25–30 min until golden and hard.
- Cool completely; they will harden as they dry. Store in an airtight container.
How it was made : Kâk (dry dough rings) appears throughout the medieval Islamic world as travel and provision food, precisely because its low moisture content makes it resistant to rancidity. It was soaked to soften at the way station.
The contemporary twist : Dip half a ring in dark chocolate—an anachronistic treat for snack time—or simply serve with mint tea.
Sources : Ibn Sayyār al-Warrāq, Kitāb al-Tabīkh (10th century) · Nawal Nasrallah, Annals of the Caliphs' Kitchens (2007)
Avicenna · Charactorium
