Alternative names | Tahinopitta, Tahinli çörek |
---|---|
Type | Sweet roll |
Place of origin | Armenia |
Region or state | South Caucasus, Cyprus, Greece, Turkey, Levant |
Main ingredients | Dough, tahini, sugar, cinnamon |
A tahini roll or tahini bread roll is a sweet pastry found commonly in the cuisines of Arab countries, Armenia, Cyprus, Greece and Turkey. Tahini roll originated in Armenia, where they are called tahinov hatz. [1]
They are a popular street food in Cyprus. [2] In the Cypriot capital of Nicosia, street vendors with carts or bikes, as well as bakeries sell tahini rolls. [3]
Its name varies by location. In Arab countries it is known as khubz tahini. [4] The Armenian name is Թահինով Հաց. In the Greek language it is known as ταχινόπιττα (tahinopitta) or τασιηνόπιττα (tasinopitta); in Cypriot Greek the pronunciation is "tashinopita" with a "sh" sound as opposed to "h" in mainland Greek. [5] In the Turkish language, the general term is tahinli çörek, although in Cypriot Turkish it is known simply as tahınlı or tahınnı. [6]
The dough includes sugar and oil and has a texture between a bread and a cookie. It is leavened with yeast and can be baked after the first rise. [4] Sometimes the pastry may be soaked in syrup of sugar or honey, and flavored with cinnamon. [2]
Tahini rolls are made by rolling the dough flat, spreading it with the tahini mixture, sprinkling with sugar, and rolling into a log shape. The dough is then sliced into smaller pieces and flattened to form a circle.