Kete

Ingredients

Dough

• 400 gplain flour
• 150 gbutter, cold and diced
• 100 mlsour cream or matsoni
• 1egg yolk
• 1/2 tspbaking powder
• 1/2 tspsalt
• 2 tbspcold water, if needed

Khoriz filling

• 150 gplain flour
• 150 gbutter, softened
• 150 gcaster sugar
• 1/2 tspground cardamom, if wanted
• 1 tspvanilla extract

To finish

• 1egg yolk, beaten with 1 tbsp milk
• a few strands of saffron, if wanted

Directions

1. Put the flour for the filling in a bowl. Add the softened butter and the sugar. Rub everything together with your fingertips. Keep rubbing until it looks like coarse damp sand.
2. Add the vanilla and the cardamom and work them through. It should clump when squeezed but fall apart when released. Chill it while you make the dough. Put the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the cold diced butter to it.
3. Rub it in with your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs. Work quickly so the butter stays cold. Add the sour cream and the egg yolk. Bring it together into a dough without kneading it. Add the cold water only if it will not come together. Wrap it and rest it in the fridge for thirty minutes. Divide the dough in two, one piece slightly larger.
4. Roll the larger piece into a circle about twenty-eight centimetres across. Lay it on a lined baking tray. Spread the chilled khoriz over it, leaving a three-centimetre border.
5. Press the crumb down gently so it sits evenly. Roll the second piece into a slightly smaller circle. Lay it over the filling and press down. Now sealing it, which must be done carefully. Press the border of the bottom circle up over the edge of the top. Crimp the two together the whole way round.
6. Press firmly, since filling that escapes will burn on the tray. Turn the sealed edge inwards to neaten it. Press the whole round down gently with your palm. It should be about two centimetres thick.
7. Brush the top with the beaten egg yolk and milk. Soak the saffron in a teaspoon of warm water and brush it over for colour. Score a pattern across the top with the back of a knife. Score only the surface and do not cut through to the filling.
8. Prick the top a few times with a fork so steam can escape. Heat the oven to 180C in good time. Bake it for thirty to thirty-five minutes. It should be deep golden and firm to the touch. Turn the tray once halfway if the oven browns unevenly. Cover it loosely with foil if it colours too fast. Now cooling it, which needs patience.
9. Let it cool on the tray for fifteen minutes. Cutting it hot makes the filling run out. Cut it into eight wedges with a heavy sharp knife. Press straight down rather than sawing across it. The cut face should show a clear band of filling in the middle.

Technique

• Keep the khoriz a crumb rather than working it into a paste.
• Seal the edges firmly, since escaping filling burns on the tray.
• Let it cool almost completely before cutting, or the filling runs.

Substitutions

• Thick natural yoghurt in place of matsoni or sour cream.
• Ground walnuts worked into the khoriz, which some households add.

Variations

• With chopped walnuts through the filling.
• Made as individual small pastries rather than one round.
• Armenian gata, which is the same pastry family.

History

Especially associated with Karabakh and Ganja; the same pastry family as Armenian gata.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kete?

Kete is a bread & pastry from Azerbaijan: round pastry filled with sweetened butter-and-flour crumb, cut into wedges. Especially associated with Karabakh and Ganja; the same pastry family as Armenian gata.

How long does Kete take to make?

Kete takes 40 min plus 30 min resting of preparation and 35 min of cooking. The recipe makes 8 wedges. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Kete?

Yes, within limits. Thick natural yoghurt in place of matsoni or sour cream. Ground walnuts worked into the khoriz, which some households add.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kete?

Press the crumb down gently so it sits evenly. Roll the second piece into a slightly smaller circle. Lay it over the filling and press down. Now sealing it, which must be done carefully. Press the border of the bottom circle up over the edge of the top. Crimp the two together the whole way round.