Koloocheh or Kleicha (

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 ...

: کلوچه), also known as Persian New Year Bread, is a

stamped cookie or bread, originating in various parts of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. There are many variations on the recipe (bready-texture vs. crispy; and stuffed vs. unstuffed) which spans from the Arabian Peninsula to various diaspora communities including in

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whic ...

, and North America.

About

Typically koloocheh are cookies filled with dates and walnuts, but can be stuffed with grated coconut and additionally spiced with saffron, rose water, cardamom, cinnamon, or citrus zest. The recipe for Caspian cuisine-style bready koloocheh cookie can be made

vegan Veganism is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal product—particularly in diet—and an associated philosophy that rejects the commodity status of animals. An individual who follows the diet or philosophy is known as a vegan. ...

by replacing butter with coconut oil. It is a recipe made by

Persian Jews Persian Jews or Iranian Jews ( fa, یهودیان ایرانی, ''yahudiān-e-Irāni''; he, יהודים פרסים ''Yəhūdīm Parsīm'') are the descendants of Jews who were historically associated with the Persian Empire, whose successor ...

during the holiday

Purim Purim (; , ; see Name below) is a Jewish holiday which commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, an official of the Achaemenid Empire who was planning to have all of Persia's Jewish subjects killed, as recounted in the Book ...

; by

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

during Easter; and

Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

during Ramadan. For

Norooz Nowruz ( fa, نوروز, ; ), zh, 诺鲁孜节, ug, نەۋروز, ka, ნოვრუზ, ku, Newroz, he, נורוז, kk, Наурыз, ky, Нооруз, mn, Наурыз, ur, نوروز, tg, Наврӯз, tr, Nevruz, tk, Nowruz, ...

(English: Persian New Year), Iranians will make a koloocheh bread. Koloocheh cookies from

Southern Iran Southern Iran consists of the southern mountain ranges of Zagros and Central Iranian Range, Khuzestan Plain and the northern coasts of Persian Gulf and Straight of Hormuz. It includes the provinces of Fars, Kohgiluyeh and Buyer Ahmad, Hormo ...

are brittle biscuits that principally consists of

water Water (chemical formula ) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living ...

, sugar,

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 ...

and egg white. File:Fresh Cookies for Sale - Punel - Caspian Seacoast - Northwestern Iran (7418502512).jpg, Traditional cookie making in Punel village File:Fuman Koloocheh.jpg, Renowned thin Koloocheh from

Fuman, Iran Fuman ( fa, فومن ''Fuman'') is the capital of Fuman County in Gilan Province, Iran. At to the 2006 census, its population was 27,763 in 7,728 families. Rice has been cultivated in this region for many years, where some indigenous cultivars ...

prior to cooking

Etymology

From

Middle Persian Middle Persian or Pahlavi, also known by its endonym Pārsīk or Pārsīg () in its later form, is a Western Middle Iranian language which became the literary language of the Sasanian Empire. For some time after the Sasanian collapse, Middle ...

ook Pahlavi needed/small> (kwlʾck' /kulāčag/, “small, round bun”)

References

Cookies Culture in Shiraz Iranian pastries Iraqi cuisine Saudi Arabian cuisine Talysh cuisine Vegan cuisine {{iran-cuisine-stub

About

Etymology

See also

References