Badambura Recipe

Here is the recipe for Badambura , which is one of the sweet varieties of Azerbaijani local desserts.

Necessary products for badambura:

Yeast mixture
-1 tsp dry
-1 Tbsp granulated sugar
-1 Tbsp flour
-1/3 c warm water
Ingredients for dough
-1 egg (room temperature)
-1 yolk
-pinch of salt
-1 Tbsp vanilla sugar (I just used sugar, and a little vanilla extract)
-1 cup unsalted butter, meltedd
-1 cup warm milk
-5 cups AP flour
Ingredients for filling(I’m going to half the amounts for you, and if you come up short, you can blame me)
-1/2 lb peeled almonds
-1/2 lb granulated sugar
-1 tsp cardamom
-1 Tbsp vanilla sugar (I believe I actually used some coconut sugar instead..for kicks?)
Additional ingredients
1 cup melted clarified butter, for brushing between layers of dough
powdered sugar for dusting

Instructions:

-Start with the yeast mixture. Mix the dry ingredients together, and add 1/3 cup of warm water. Mix together until smooth, and leave to rise in a warm place.
-While the yeast mixture is rising, melt the butter, and warm the milk.
-For the dough, in a large bowl, mix the egg, egg yolk, salt, vanilla sugar and yeast mixture. Add the warm milk and melted butter, and mix it all together.
-Begin kneading the dough while slowly adding flour. Save some flour for dusting the layers.
-Continue kneading the dough until its smooth, soft, and does not stick to your hands.
-Put dough into a clean bowl, cover with plastic, and let rise for 1-2 hours in a warm place. (Would you like to make this dish together? Join our Cooking Masterclasses to learn and taste the national cuisine of Azerbaijan!)

-While dough is rising, prepare the filling. Blend the skinned almonds until it resembles coarse salt. Mix the blended almonds with the sugar, cardamom, and vanilla sugar. Set aside.

-Once the dough is risen, divide it into six equal balls. Cover them to prevent them from drying out. Roll out the first ball into a very thin layer (until its see-through). Try to keep it square or rectangle shaped. Gently brush with warm, melted clarified butter. Roll out the second ball of dough, place it on top of the first layer, and brush with the butter again. Repeat until all the layers are used.
-Preheat Oven to 350 F/180 C.
-Once all layers are stacked, roll all the layers into a tight roll, as you would a roulade. Slice the dough into equal pieces, approx. 1/2 inch/1.5 cm thick. Gently flatten out each slice, making a small bowl shape in the palm of your hand. Put one full tablespoon of filling inside, and bring the edges together to close it. Pinch the edges tightly, and twist them along the seam to keep it closed.

-Place the Badambura on a baking sheet, seam down, so they are sitting on the seam.

-Bake for about 20 minutes, until bottom is slightly golden brown. Top should still be light.