Almonds Briouats

Ingredients     For the almond paste     250g almonds, blanched, peeled     250g caster sugar     Zest of 1 lemon     2 small eggs     100ml orange-blossom water     For the briouats     16 brick sheets     30cl sunflower oil     75g toasted sesame seeds     For the syrup     250g caster sugar     1 tbsp clear honey     15cl water     Juice of 1 lemon     1 tbsp orange-blossom water Preparation For the almond paste spread the peeled almonds on a kitchen towel and leave to dry at room temperature. Mince almonds in a food processor. Add sugar and process the mixture again. Add lemon zest, then add eggs and orange-blossom water. Knead with your hands to make dough of 3 cm diameter and 8 mm thickness. Keep aside on a greased tray. For the briouat cut each brick sheet in 3 strips, each 5 cm wide. Keep one end of the strip straight and cut the other end in a bevelled shape. Spread one strip of brick on your working surface. Put one almond paste patty close to the straight end of the strip and keep on folding in a triangular shape till the end of the paste strip. The triangular parcel thus formed is called a briouat. To close the briouat, slide the bevelled end of the brick sheet into the last slot of the briouat (as you would do for an unsealed envelope). Repeat till you have used up all the pastry sheet and the almond paste. Heat oil and fry in batches till crisp and golden brown. Drain and keep aside. For the syrup put sugar, honey and water in a heavy-bottomed pan on a medium heat and stir with a wooden spoon till the sugar melts, lower the heat and leave to simmer for 10 minutes. Add lemon juice, stir and leave to cook on very low heat for 10 more minutes. Remove from heat and add orange-blossom water and mix. (For the briouats, the syrup must not colour and not be too thick.) Once the briouats are cool, dip them in the warm syrup. Remove them with a slotted spoon and arrange them on a serving dish. Sprinkle toasted sesame seeds on the briouats before serving. Serve with mint tea.