Knafeh
Yum
Knafeh is traditional Levant dessert made with kadayif, attar, and vanilla filling.
More than a year ago, I published Dubai Cheesecake . Kadayif is must have for this type of dessert. Making it from scratch was not an option for me since I have never done it before. Luckily, there is ready made version available on line so I used this version and we loved it.
Kadaif is spun pastry dough, used in Arab desserts. Fresh package arrived for this Knafeh recipe. The batch for this dessert was already roasted and packed, ordered on line to make the process much easier:
It is usually soaked in sweet, sugar based syrup called attar. There are detailed ingredients below.
My homework was to do some research about the ingredients so here are the details:
What is kadaif made of?
Kadayif (or kataifi) is a Middle Eastern and Mediterranean pastry made from a shredded dough similar to vermicelli but much thinner. The shredded strands are created from a simple batter of flour, water, and cornstarch. To make the final dessert, these strands are tossed in melted butter, stuffed with nuts or cheese, baked, and soaked in a sweet sugar syrup, named qatir or attar.
Qatir, qatr, sheera or attar is a type of sweet syrup used in the preparation of Middle Eastern desserts. It is made of primarily sugar and water, and is reduced slightly until somewhat golden and thicker. It is sometimes accented by steeping additional flavorings such as lemon juice, rose water or oil, or attar (a rose-hinted plant of similar name). It is an essential addition to many Arab desserts, and is added cold or at room temperature to a hot dessert after it is baked.
Kataifi aka Kadayif tastes light, airy, and slightly buttery—though it’s not rich or sweet on its own. Instead, it acts like a sponge, soaking up the essence of every ingredient around it. In sweet recipes, it takes on the flavor of honey, sugar syrup, nuts, or spices like cinnamon and clove.
This Knafeh recipe offers a bit different taste so check it out !
For the best results, make it one day ahead if possible and leave it to rest in the fridge.
Knafeh
Knafeh is traditional Levant dessert made with kadayif, attar, and vanilla filling.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cup kadayif, store bought, crushed
- Ingredients for filling:
- 2 cups milk
- 7 Tbsp heavy cream
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp all purpose flour
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- 1 cup finely cubed fresh mozzarella
- Ingredients for attar (quatir):
- 5 Tbsp sugar
- 3 ½ Tbsp water
- 1 Tbsp fresh lemon syrup
- Pistachio spread or ground nuts to serve, optional
Instructions
-
On medium heat, in small pot, melt sugar, water and lemon juice to get sugary syrup aka attar/quatir. It takes 2 minutes. Leave aside to cool.
-
For the filling, combine milk, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla extract, flour, and cornstarch in medium sized pot. Warm the filling and bring to boil, stirring constantly to get silky cream. It takes 11 minutes.
-
When the cream is almost done, add mozzarella and mix until it melts. The filling must be smooth.
-
Preheat the oven to 200 C/ 392 F.
-
Fill rounded pan (9 inches in diameter) with half of your kadayif. Please, have in mind to cover your dish with parchment paper if the bottom is removable.
-
Carefully pour the filling over the first layer of kadayif.
-
Sprinkle the rest of kadayif and bake for 15 minutes.
-
Once you take your knafeh out of the oven, cover it with cool quatir.
-
Our experience shows this dessert is the best if left overnight and served the other day.
Recipe Notes
Cooking time includes both filling and attar (quatir) boiling.
Leave a Reply