Mimouna Celebrations
by Kathleen Pokrud, President of Hong Kong Ladies’ Group
The Embassy of Israel and the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco recently organized the first-ever joint Moroccan-Jewish celebration of Mimouna in Bangkok. The event was held at the Residence of the Ambassador of Israel. The special cocktail-style party was significant following the normalization between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco in 2020. The guests experienced the joy of Jewish-Moroccan food, sweets, music and colors.
The Embassy of Israel and the Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco recently organised the first ever joint Moroccan-Jewish celebration of Mimouna in Bangkok. The event was held at the Residence of the Ambassador of Israel. The special cocktail style party was significant following the normalisation between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco in 2020. The guests experienced the joy of Jewish-Moroccan food, sweets, music and colours.
Mimouna is a unique tradition celebrated by the Jewish community in Morocco. It is held the day after Passover (Pesach in Hebrew). Passover is a major Jewish holiday that celebrates the exodus of the Jewish people from slavery in Egypt. During the Passover, the Jewish people avoid anything that contains grain that has risen or fermented, for example breads, pastas, beers, liquors, etc.
Mimouna marks the return to eating food that is forbidden throughout the week of Passover. Traditionally, Jews in Morocco held an “open house” for all their friends and neighbours to come and go between the various celebrations. The celebration has special sweets; including Mofletta, which is a thin crepe made from water, flour and oil, usually eaten warm with honey.
In the welcoming remarks, H.E. Mr. Abderrahim Rahhaly, Ambassador of His Majesty the King of Morocco to the Kingdom of Thailand, offered the special greetings of these celebrations “Trabhou w tsaadou” or in English “May you have success and good luck”. “Mimouna is a unique Moroccan Jewish tradition that marks the end of the Jewish Passover, through which the Jewish community enjoys moments of joy, happiness, friendliness and sympathy. It is a particular celebration in the Kingdom of Morocco, which shows signs of religious tolerance, acceptance and respect. It reflects the particularity of the presence of the Jewish community at the heart of a Muslim majority country.”
H.E. Ms. Orna Sagiv, Ambassador of the State of Israel to the Kingdom of Thailand agreed,
“It is clear that The Mimouna party took place two years after normalising relations between the State of Israel and the Kingdom of Morocco. It is truly a new era of friendship, which is just the beginning of working together. So we look forward to seeing more projects and collaborations, that will be held in the future.”
The event was well attended by international ambassadors and business community. To signify the cooperation, the two Ambassadors, Ms. Orna and Mr. Abderrahim joined hands to help making the snacks used for the celebrations feast.
Recipes for some popular and favorite sweets served during Mimouna
Moroccan Mofletta
Ingredients:
1 kg. White flour
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 teaspoon Dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon Salt
3 cups Water (if necessary add another half cup)
Oil for dipping the dough balls
1 tablespoon Vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Baking soda
Preparation
Pour in the water gradually and as needed and begin to knead until a nice, uniform dough is obtained. 2. Divide the dough into balls the size of a ping pong ball, dip each in oil and place on a tray or pan to rest for 15 minutes. 3. On a greased surface open the first ball with your hands to a dough sheet as thin as possible. Place on a hot pan and meanwhile open another dough ball. 4. Turn the first moflet after about 2 minutes, place the new moflet we opened on top of it and turn over and place a new muffle again. Continue like this. Every 10 escapees start a new pile. |
Homemade Marzipan
Ingredients:
200 grams bleached almonds (or ground bleached almonds, ground on the spot in a spice store)
80 grams (two-thirds cup) powdered sugar, sifted (refined sweetness, can be increased by a few tablespoons to taste)
½ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
20-30 ml. (a tablespoon and a half to two) water, as needed
About half a teaspoon of quality almond extract, or to taste (or 5-10 grams of bitter almonds)
Preparation:
- Grind the blanched almonds well in a food processor to crumbs as thin as possible-
The mixture will still remain a little crumbly at this point and grind thinner after adding the powdered sugar.
If bitter almonds are used, grind them together with the bleached almonds.
- Add the powdered sugar and grind well to a fine powder – even if you stay in the finished marzipan
- A few thin crumbs is fine, but be careful not to leave almond crumbs too large and uneven.
Coconut Meringue Cookies
Ingredients:
4 cups ground coconut
8 units of protein
3 cups sugar
2 bags of vanilla sugar
Pinch of salt
Some colored candies for the cake, for decoration
About 50 cuff units
Preparation:
- Put the proteins in a large bowl with a pinch of salt and beat. Gradually add the sugar and vanilla sugar, whisking. Continue to whip until you get a steady pace.
- Whisk for about 15 minutes, until the sugar melts and the foam is stiff.
- Add the coconut and stir well, simmer for 20 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a perfusion bag with a large star-shaped mouth-shaped catheter, and infuse in a rotary manner into the cuffs. Sprinkle a little candy for decoration.
- Bake for about 20 minutes at 150 degrees, until the cookies harden and turn slightly golden. Cool and place in a storage box.
