Knafeh Food

KNAFEH (MIDDLE EASTERN PASTRY DESSERT) RECIPE

Steps:

• Add the water, rose water, orange blossom water, sugar, and lemon juice to a pot. Stir well.
• Place over high heat and bring to a boil. Stir until the sugar has dissolved completely.
• Remove from heat and allow to cool.
• Preheat oven to 375ºF (190ºC).
• Spread the phyllo dough apart using your fingers. Place dough in a large bowl.
• Melt butter. Add coloring to the butter and mix.
• Pour butter over the phyllo and mix with your hands tearing the phyllo. Saturate the topping in butter. (Use gloves to make sure you don't dye your fingers!)
• Cover the bottom of the tray with the phyllo dough topping (minus a handful to place on top).
• Drain the cheese and squeeze out as much water as you can. Press the cheese into the tray on top of the dough. Add the last handful and spread thinly over the top.
• Bake for 15 to 20 minutes (the cheese will have melted).
• Remove from the oven and flip tray into a slightly larger tray/plate.
• Pour sugar syrup over knafeh. Sprinkle with crushed pistachio nuts.
• Serve immediately.

KNAFEH

Steps:

• Mix cheese, sugar, and orange blossom water together.
• Chop knafeh dough with a sharp knife. Mix with 1 3/4 cups hot butter over low fire for 15 minutes, or until dough absorbs all the butter.
• Mix 1/4 cup butter, knafeh coloring, and spread in a 17x12 inch pan. Sprinkle pine nuts evenly.
• Spread 2/3 of the dough in the pan over the nuts and press well. Spread the cheese mixture over dough evenly. Cover with the rest of the dough and press well.
• Bake at 400 degrees in a preheated oven for 30 minutes. (Place on lower rack).
• Add thin attar. Flip the tray over in another tray of the same size. Return to the oven and bake for 10 more minutes.
• Garnish with pistachios and serve hot!

KUNEFE

Steps:

• For the syrup: Put the sugar and 1 cup water in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a boil, lower the heat to medium low and simmer until it thickens a bit, 10 to 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let the syrup cool to room temperature.
• For the kunefe: Cut the kadayif into small pieces and put it in a large bowl. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter, add it to the bowl and mix with a spoon to make sure all of the kadayif pieces are coated in butter.
• Coat the bottoms of two 5-inch kunefe pans completely with 1 tablespoon of the butter. Spoon out a quarter of the kadayif mixture into one of the pans, spread and press down using a spoon. Crumble 1 ounce of the sweet cheese onto the kadayif, leaving about a 1/2-inch border on all sides. Top with another quarter of the kadayif mixture and press with your hands.
• Place the pan over medium-low heat and cook until golden on the bottom (there will be an aroma of toasted nuts), 4 to 6 minutes. Place the other prepared pan over the kunefe and flip (be careful, the pan is hot). Place it back on the heat and cook uncovered until the underside is golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from the heat, drizzle 1/4 cup of the syrup all over the kunefe and top with 1 tablespoon of the ground pistachios. Re-butter the pans and repeat with the remaining kadayif, cheese, syrup and pistachios. Serve immediately with extra syrup for drizzling.

KANAFA

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Use a food processor to finely chop the frozen, shredded phyllo dough. The strands should be about the size of a grain of rice. Pour the dough into a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, and 1/3 cup sugar.
• Place the butter in a large liquid measuring cup or bowl with a spout. Heat the butter in a microwave until completely melted, and let it sit for several minutes until a thick white foam has formed on top. Clarify the butter by using a spoon to skim off the foam.
• Carefully pour the butter into the bowl of phyllo dough. Avoid pouring in the white milk solids at the bottom of the clarified butter. Use your hands to mix the butter and dough together. Make sure that the butter is absorbed by taking handfuls of the dough and rubbing it between your palms.
• Evenly spread the buttered phyllo dough into a 9x13-inch pan and firmly press it into the bottom and edges. Spread the cheese mixture onto the dough, avoiding the edges of the pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the cheese is slightly golden and the edges of dough are brown and bubbly, 30 to 35 minutes.
• While the kanafa is baking, prepare the syrup. Combine the water and 1/2 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the lemon juice. Simmer, stirring constantly, until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is thickened, 5 to 7 minutes. (Do not let the mixture turn golden and caramelize.) Remove from heat and add the rose water; set aside.
• Remove the kanafa from the oven. Place a large platter or baking sheet over the baking dish. Using oven mitts, carefully invert the baking dish onto the platter so the phyllo is on top. Pour the syrup over the kanafa. Cut into pieces and serve while hot.

KNAFEH BIL JIBNE

Steps:

• 48 hours before, soak the akkawi & haloumi cheese in a bowl of water, keep in the fridge. This is to remove any saltiness. If you can't find these cheeses, use mozzarella instead and skip the soaking part.
• Preheat oven to 200C. Shred the raw knafeh in a mixer until fine. Mix the shredded knafeh with lots of butter until well coated- it needs to literally soak in butter. Split the butter-coated knafeh into two equal amounts.
• Spread out one part of the knafeh onto a parchment paper lined baking tray. Then add the diced cheese, and finish off by covering with a layer of the remaining knafeh.
• Bake for 20 minutes at 180C, then check every 5 minutes. It is ready when it has become of a deep golden colour. During baking time, prepare the syrup by placing equal amounts of sugar and water into a deep pan and boil for a good 10 mins (until it’s texture is rather thick). At the end, add some orange blossom or rose water to the syrup.
• Once out of the oven, immediately pour over the syrup- generously. Sprinkle with some crushed pistachios and enjoy! A visual guide available at http://swirlandscramble.blogspot.com/2010/06/cant-get-enough-of-knafeh-bil-jibne.html

KANAFEH OR KUNAFA OR KANAFI

Steps:

• Make Syrup first:.
• Bring water and sugar to a boil, reduce heat.
• Add lemon juice and rose water (optional).
• Simmer until all sugar is dissolved, about 5-10min.
• Set aside to cool.
• Kanafi:.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Drain ricotta of excess liquid and mix with other cheese.
• Remove shredded phyllo dough from box and loosen shreds in a large bowl.
• Toss the shreds with melted butter to coat evenly.
• Arrange half of the buttered dough evenly on a 9X13 pan or baking dish.
• Spoon cheese mixture on top in an even layer.
• Place the remaining dough on top and press lightly with hands.
• Cover with foil and bake 30 min at 350°F.
• Remove foil and bake an additional 30 min or until crisp and golden .
• Serve warm or room temp with lemon syrup.