Fataa’ir Farmaajo or Fatayer are easy to pick finger food from Somalia. These fatayers are soft, fluffy, yeasted bread having different fillings like meat, cheese, or spinach. The fatayer shape changes based on the filling it has, so each one has a different name.
The square shape has meat fatayer, the boat shape has cheese filling, and the spinach fatayer into triangular ones. Again not everybody follows these rules.
The dough for the Fatayer is very easy to prepare as well. It only needs about 15 minutes of rest. Though one can always make this ahead and refrigerate. The dough recipe also is so flexible that you can adjust based on your preferences.
I adapted my recipe from this site, which has some wonderful dishes you can select from. She has detailed videos to help as well. I picked up to make Cheese Fatayer or Fatayer au Fromage
Fatayer is called by different names based on the filling and shape.
Since my kids love cheese, it was so convenient to make these instead of trying hands at different things. The cheese fatayer has a filling mix of salty cheese, parsley, mint, and nigella seeds make that really turns out so good.
Akkawi cheese is filling in an authentic fatayer. If this is not available, one can use a combination of Feta Cheese and herbs. Or even a mix of ricotta and mozzarella cheese along with herb.
I also used cottage cheese and cheddar along with other combinations. Since the dough for this fatayer hardly takes much time, you can prepare a huge batch and freeze it as well. However, you got to shape these as soon as resting is done. And bake them right away to prevent the dough from rising too much.
Since we use the yeasted dough, it tends to puff up faster. So shape them and bake them right away. I wanted to keep it in the traditional shape and hence make it a boat-like shape. However, from what I read these are made to one’s liking, some even make these are mini pizzas.
I didn't search for any other dish for F for the A to Z International Street Foods. If you are interested to know the Flatbread for A, check this post.
Step By Step Pictures for making Fataa’ir Farmaajo
Fataa’ir Farmaajo | Cheese Fatayer from Somalia
Preparing the Fatayer Dough (Cajiin Fataa’ir) Pâte à Fatayer
Take the flour in a bowl, add the yeast, sugar, and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients then add the milk and olive oil.
Mix well until combined then knead for 5 minutes.
Cover and let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
Making the Filling
Wash and grate the cheese
Chop the herbs finely and mix with cheese and keep it aside.
Preparing the fatayer
Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces.
Roll the disc out into an oval shape.
Put 1 teaspoon of the filling in the middle and spread.
Lift one edge and press the ends. Do the same with other edges making a boat-like shape.
Preheat the oven to 200C
Place all the shaped fatayer on parchment paper and bake for 20 mins.
Recipe
Fataa’ir Farmaajo | Cheese Fatayer from Somalia
Ingredients
For the Fatayer Dough (Cajiin Fataa’ir) Pâte à Fatayer
- 2.5 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1.5 tsp Instant Yeast
- 1 tbsp Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1 cup Milk lukewarm
- 1/3 cup Olive oil
For the Fataa’ir Farmaajo
- 1 cup Feta Cheese / Akkawi cheese
- 1/2 cup Ricotta
- 1/2 cup Mozzarella
- 1/2 cup Parsley finely chopped
- 1/4 cup Mint Leaves finely chopped
- 1 tsp Nigella seeds
Instructions
Preparing the Fatayer Dough (Cajiin Fataa’ir) Pâte à Fatayer
- Take the flour in a bowl, add the yeast, sugar and salt. Whisk the dry ingredients then add the milk and olive oil.
- Mix well until combined then knead for 5 minutes.
- Cover and let the dough rest for 10 to 15 minutes.
Making the Filling
- Wash and grate the cheese
- Chop the herbs finely and mix with cheese and keep it aside.
Preparing the Fatayer
- Divide the dough into 24 equal pieces.
- Roll the disc out into an oval shape.
- Put 1 teaspoons of the filling in the middle and spread.
- Lift one edge and press the ends. Do the same with other edge making a boat like a shape.
- Preheat the oven to 200C
- Place all the shaped fatayer on a parchment paper and bake for 20 mins.
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manjulabharathkumar2016 says
Wow Boat shaped Fatayer look fantabulous, You have baked some amazing breads, They look so cute in small size..I am loving this cheese filling, the combination of 3 cheese is very interesting valli. very well explained recipe there.. so true kids are fond of nothing but cheese all the time, this is just a perfect recipe choice for F and please those cheese lovers 🙂
Priya Suresh says
Omg, those fatayers are seriously fabulous and am sure they are definitely dangerously addictive. Am in love with those cute small bite sized like fatayer. Prefect pick for F Valli.
Sandhiya says
That's an interesting recipe ,those fataair bread looks so good with beautifully browned crust and the filling also sounds delicious . Kudos to you for trying out these type of different recipe and sharing them,Valli
Pavani says
Those fatayer look so cheesy and inviting Valli. That boat shape looks great, I think my kids will surely love this. I like the endless possibilities of the fillings here too.
Anonymous says
Cheesy Fatayer !..wow!!Love it Valli. The boat shape looks really cute . These would be such a hit at any kiddo party, not that adults would'nt enjoy!Super Duper pick.
Vaishali Sabnani says
Cheesy Fatayer ! Wow !!..These little boat shaped fatayers look so cute, the special sounds classic and I bet these would be such a hit at any party. Fantastic pick for the alphabet.
Harini says
That is great find. I frequently used to go a Middle eastern store which has since been closed down. I used to see these boat shaped baked goods with some greens and cheese, but never ventured to buy them. Now I am thinking if they were these cute fata'ir.
Sharmila - The Happie Friends Potpourri Corner says
Such a fabulous cheesy fatayer.. So yumm... Love those boat shaped cuties!!
Gayathri Kumar says
These boat shaped tiny bread parcels look uber cute. And love to have the cheese filled version any time.
Sandhya Ramakrishnan says
I have been eyeing these beautiful boats for a while now and have a spinach fatter bookmarked to make for a long time. Yours have turned out gorgeous and love the cheesy filling. This is winner all the time.
srividhya says
These reminded me of our veggie puffs but open puff... Love that cheesy filling and no wonder why you didn't look further for F. This is a perfect pick.
Padmajha PJ says
You found a gem from the Somalian Cuisine Srivalli! These boat shaped brad look so good and yum filling as well!
cookingwithsapana says
Wow those bread look so nice in the shape of boats and with three cheese filling must have been a treat for kids too.
Priya Srinivasan says
i m drooling at the cheesy fatayer!!! u have shaped them so pretty valli! None say no to that yummy cheesy filling, i m sure my kiddos too would love this !!
kalyani says
particuarly loved the 2nd pic from top ! this looks like a mini version of pizza that my kids would love :))
Mayuri Patel says
Nice cheesy fatayer as snack food and love the shape. Somali cuisine has such a strong Arab influence.
Simply Tadka says
Wow.. i love cheesy baked snack.. these cute boat style snack looks so tasty and cheesey..
Suma Gandlur says
These mini, cheesy fatair look fabulous and cute.