Iran, this old country with aboriginal culture and civilization, has all kinds and varieties of traditional pastries, cookies, candy, and sweets. In this article, we are going to talk about one of the oldest types of candy that we call it “Gaz” (گز). Gaz is a kind of sweet, chewy, and brittle candy that we stud it with pistachios and scent with rose water. It is a member of the traditional Persian nougat family because we make it with egg white, sugar, and roasted nuts. Of course, it is a cross between nougat and marshmallow.
The Gaz place of origin is Esfahan. Esfahan is one of Iran`s cultural city that everyone knows it for its architecture, places, tiled mosques, covered bridges, grand boulevards, and its unusual souvenir such as Gaz candy. Whenever someone hears Gaz word, it reminds them of this beautiful city. So it is well-known as Gaz-e-Esfahan.
Gaz candy gets its name from a Persian word “Gaz-Angebin”. Gaz-Angabin means sap of Angebin. The ancients believed that the sap of Angebin was the main ingredient of Gaz that gave it the recognizable stickiness and chewiness. The native people obtain the Gaz-Angabin from a wild tamarisk tree native to the mountain of Zagros. But since this sap is very rare and expensive, they replace it with a combination of sugar and corn or glucose syrup which yields the same result.
I think that I should add it hear that you can serve it at parties such as kitty parties, potlucks, and game nights or even you can have it as an evening meal with a cup of hot fresh Persian tea. But the main occasion that you serve it is on Norouz holiday when your gusts come for Did-o-Baz did. You never can find anyone that doesn’t like Gas. Especially children love to eat this candy during playing time.
Different types of Gaz:
There is one single type of Gaz but various tastes. As we mentioned already, we stud it with pistachios and scent with rose water. But you can replace roasted almond instead of the pistachios and use cardamom instead of rose water so make different flavorings. You can also add some saffron to the recipe and change its pure white color, and so you create a beautiful golden yellow. These are some changes you apply in Gaz candy`s appearance and taste
Important Nutrition facts of Gaz:
Each Gaz candy is almost 25 to 50gr weights. It is a high-calorie dish with 239cal per 3.5oz (100gr) which its 67 calories are from fat. Also, it includes 4.9gr of protein, 1.8gr of dietary fiber, and 55gr of carbohydrates. As like most candies, it is high in sugar with 34.7gr per 100gr. So be careful if you are on a losing diet because it will make you stop losing weight and you will gain weight because of its sugar amount. It is also very harmful to people with diabetes.
Vegetarian tips:
If you are a vegetarian and you want to taste Gaz Since it is a kind of pastry and it has not any meat in its recipe. So it is available and suitable for your diet. The only material which a vegan can sharp is its eggs that they can`t be replaced with anything else. So we are sorry that vegans can`t taste these delicious cookies.
Serving style of Gaz:
As mentioned earlier, you can serve Gaz at parties such as kitty parties, potlucks, and game nights. But the main occasion that you serve it is on Norouz holiday when your gusts come for Did-o-Baz did. You can also have it as an evening meal with a cup of hot fresh Persian tea in a friendly gathering.
What are the ingredients of Gaz?
To make a simple homemade recipe of Gaz, you need some base ingredients. Including egg withe, sugar, corn syrup or glucose, rose water, butter or ghee, and pistachios. Some other elements that you can add to this recipe or replace them according to your preference are cardamom powder, almond slice, vanilla, honey, and brewed saffron. It depends on your taste, and it is an option.
How to cook Gaz?
For starting cooking Gaz, you need to prepare Meringue. So you should separate the york form white part. You should pour the egg withe in the mixer and whisk it until fluffy and soft peaks form. After that, you have to pour corn syrup, water, and sugar in a saucepan and put it on a medium flame. You shouldn’t leave it and stir it until sugar dissolves properly and it reaches 300F. Also, you should pour the honey into another saucepan and put it on a low flame and bring it to a soft boil. Now you should add the honey to Meringue little by little as you stir. After that, you should add your syrup to the mixture little by little as you mix it with a mixer.
After the combination gets a glossy texture, you need to add rose water and butter or ghee. You have to keep stirring it until it gets back to the right texture. Finely you should pour your combination to a greased pan or a pyrex that you lay down it with a parchment paper that you greased it, too. You should leave it in the room temperature and let it cools down and harden for several hours. After hardening, you can slice it to how many parts you want. It is ready to serve.
Recipe
This recipe is adequate for four people. The preparation time of Gaz is 10 minutes, and its cooking time is 60 minutes. Also, it needs a chilling time that is about 4 hours.
Gaz
Ingredients
- 2 egg white
- ½ honey
- 2 cups of sugar
- ⅓ cup corn syrup
- 2 teaspoon rosewater
- 2 tablespoon butter or ghee
- 1 cup of pistachios
Instructions
- First of all, separate egg white from york.
- Pour the egg white in the bowl of the stand mixer. But don’t whisk it yet.
- Pour honey in a saucepan and sugar, corn syrup, and water in another one.
- Pout sugar mixture in a medium flame and let it boil. After boiling it, stir it gently until the sugar dissolves properly. Turn down the flam and don’t forget to check it because it can darken quickly.
- Start whisking the egg white with medium-high speed until it fluffy and soft peaks form.
- While you are whisking egg withe, you should boil the honey.
- Add boiled honey to the egg white little by little as you are whisking it. Keep whisking it until stiff peaks form. But you shouldn’t turn the mixture off. Let it whisks with medium-high speed.
- Check the sugar mixture. If it reaches 300F, turn off the flame and add it to the main mixture. Add it as you add the boiled honey to it. Little by little as you whisk it.
- When your mixture reform to stiff peaks again, add rose water and butter.
- Keep mixing it until it gets back to the right texture.
- Stop the mixer. Add roasted pistachios and stir it until you have a smooth combination.
- Lay down the parchment paper at the bottom of a pyrex or other container that you want. Grease it.
- Pour your combination. Set it at room temperature and let it cools down and hardens for several hours.
- Slice prepared candy in the size you like.
- Place them in a serving tray. Garnish it with whatever you want.
- It is ready to serve.
Notes
Uniqop`advice
- You`d better prepare this candy at least a day before your party. Because it is a time-consuming process.
- You should store them in an airtight container with flour to keep them from sticking in a dry and cool place.
- Don’t keep them in the refrigerator. Because they become so hard that you can`t eat them.
