It’s impossible for anyone in my family to bake or eat nazook (AKA nazooki) without thinking about our auntie May. She was truly the queen of nazooki. She even typed up her recipe to be able to pass it along easily to everyone who asked… and believe me, they asked! I’d guess that her recipe made the rounds to hundreds of people, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some folks out there have a sheet of paper that’s been photocopied again and again, without even knowing May personally. It’s made the rounds, and for good reason.
I learned how to make May’s nazook last summer by studying her prolific recipe. By the end of the summer, I had come up with my own version of nazook, adapted from and inspired by hers (not because it needed to change, but because we all have our own way of doing things). My version is deeply indebted to hers, and her recipe is one of the most perfect things I’ve ever tried. But I’m keeping it with our big extended family, and sharing mine with you here, which is also darn good, and only because of all I learned from May’s example.
May passed away last July, and my family will always cherish our memories of her and her generous spirit. We wish May’s family peace and togetherness in the years to come. I also wanted to share some thoughts from my family, who loved May dearly:
Memories of May
My sister, Meghan: “Mom’s an amazing cook, but she would never make nazooki, so it was always a treat when we’d go to the Assyrian picnics as kids. I always asked mom “how come you never make these?” and she would always say that auntie May is the only one who makes them. They had a bake sale [at the picnic], and there were a bunch of different kinds of nazooki to try. But auntie May’s were always the best. I told nana that the only ones I liked were auntie May’s, and then May baked a big tray for me when she heard.”
My mom, Evelyn: “When I think of the fruits of the Spirit, May had them all: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control. About fifteen years ago or more, she showed my mom and I how to make nazooki and gave us the recipe. She had the dough ready, and we had such a great time.”
My grandmother, Romy: “She was smiling all the time, bubbly, and I was amazed that even though she was born in the US, she could speak Assyrian so perfectly. If you went to her house, she’d bring everything on the table: jajik, different cheeses, nazooki, kadeh, fruit, everything. There wasn’t even a spot in the middle of the table. She has lovely daughters and grandchildren, and a wonderful husband, and she loved all of them so much.”
2025 update: This used to be the header to my nazook recipe, but I wanted to give it its own blog post, so these memories of May live here in their own post now. ❤️
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