Family Meals
Afternoon
Dinner
PREP:
55 MINS
COOK TIME:
40 MINS
DIFFICULTY:
Intermediate
SERVES:
16
Kunafa
Kunafa is a crunchy, buttery dessert made with shredded kataifi pastry layers enclosing a creamy pudding. Soaked in a scented sugar syrup. A Middle-Eastern favourite and a month of Ramadan tradition
INGREDIENTS
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 Tblsp lemon juice
1 Tblsp rose water
500g kataifi pastry
¾ cup ghee (melted)
2 cups cream
1 cup Nestlé Dessert and Cooking Cream
2 Tblsp semolina
½ cup Nestlé Condensed Milk
2 Tblsp cornflour
1Tblsp rose water
1 tsp orange blossom water
Ghee
chopped pistachio
METHOD
Syrup: Combine sugar, water and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring to a boil on medium heat. Boil for 8 min, remove from the stove and stir in the rose water.
Set aside to cool. (2hrs
Kunafa Pastry: Preheat oven to 160°C thermofan . Place the pastry on a tray and loosen the strands by pulling them apart. Place the tray in the oven for 10 min, toss the pastry after 5 min. Remove from the oven. Allow to cool for 10min. Then place the pastry in a food processor and blitz briefly for 30 seconds.
Cream Filling: In a medium sized saucepan or small pot, combine cream, dessert cream, semolina, condensed milk and corn flour. Stick blend briefly until well combined and the cornstarch has dissolved completely without any lumps (30 seconds). Set the saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer, whisking constantly. Continue to simmer for about 2 minutes until the mixture thickens. Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in rose water and orange blossom water. Set aside to cool while preparing the cake tin.
Grease a 26cm round cake tin with ghee, set aside. Increase the oven temperature to 200°C thermofan.
Pour the melted ghee over the kataifi pastry. Rub the ghee with you hands, into the shredded kunafa, making sure they're well coated. Transfer two-thirds (360g) of the pastry to the prepared pan and firmly press it on the bottom and up the sides. Make a wall with the kunafa around the sides of the pan; this will help contain the cream filling during the baking process and prevent it from burning. Pack the pastry as tightly as possible. Use the bottom of a cup, to help press it down it tightly and smooth out the pastry.
Pour the cream filling on to the kunafa crust, spread with a spatula into an even layer. Scatter the remaining third of the pastry over the cream filling, lightly press it down
Bake for 45 min, in the bottom third of your oven until golden brown. Remove the kunafa from the oven and immediately pour on the room temperature syrup, starting from the edge and moving towards the center, in a circular motion, making sure to cover the entire surface. Reserve about a 1/2 cup of the syrup.
Let the kunafa rest for 20 minutes to allow for the syrup to soak in, then flip on to a serving platter
Scatter the top of the kunafa with pistachio, slice into wedges and drizzle with the reserved syrup. Serve immediately, kunafa is best served warm
MADE WITH LOVE & THESE DELICIOUS NESTLÉ INGREDIENTS
