Middle Eastern Knafeh (Baked Ricotta Cheese in a Shredded Phyllo Dough) Soaked in A Rosewater Syrup served with Candied Lemon Slices. Recipe below for Candied Rose Petals included

We serve Knafeh as both a dessert and a appetizer in our home. It is sure to impress and very easy to make. It basically takes less than 15 minutes prepare and then is put into the oven for a little over an hour. The shredded phyllo dough turns a beautiful golden brown and the cheese inside is warm and gooey. I serve it as an appetizer and serve crackers on the side, as a dessert, I serve it alone with a fork and plate and everyone just cuts a square and enjoys it.

It’s hard to determine the origin of Knafeh. It is claimed by many countries throughout the Middle East. Some say it originated in Palestine and others say it is Syrian, Egyptian, Lebanese or Turkish. There is all kinds of debate. Some have subtle differences, but for the most part it is some kind of cheese, sometimes homemade, sometimes a mixture of a local Middle Eastern homemade cheese and shredded mozzarella. The cook can kind of use their own interpretation. It is baked in a crispy shredded dough that is pre-made and frozen. You will probably have to buy your dough at a Middle Eastern grocery store. It will be in the freezer section and is very inexpensive. The dough is called Kataif and runs around 3-4 dollars and it will be your favorite new find if you already do not know it. It can be wrapped around shrimp, shaped in a muffin pan to make “bird’s nests” to bake small individual tartlets or it can be used on top of any dish instead of pie dough. Have fun with it. It is cheap and easy to use.

This dessert is very, very easy and involves just a few ingredients. If you add the candied lemons , of course it adds a bit more time, but candied lemons and oranges are easy to buy online and most upscale grocery stores and most liquor stores sell dried, candied oranges or lemons for cocktails. We buy candied oranges all of the time for cocktails at Trader Joes. The candied lemons are Georgia’s recipe as this is a mother daughter blog.

Knafeh is almost always served with pistachios on top. I have eliminated them in my dish, because of nut allergies, however, I did include them in the recipe and would highly suggest using them for as its adds dimension to the recipe.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking time 1 hour 15 minutes

Candied Lemon Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 lb package of Kataifi (shredded phyllo dough) either roughly crumbed or cut into 3-4 inch pieces.

1 lb. whole milk Ricotta cheese

2 Tbs flour

½ cup whole milk

2 cups unsalted butter ( this is 4 sticks) plus more for greasing the pan

1 cup sugar

½ cup water

3 Tbs lemon juice

¼ cup rosewater

1 tsp red food dye (optional) I use an all natural one

9X13 or equivalent size round pan

Directions:

Mix the sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer until sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat. Add the fresh lemon juice and the rosewater. Stir. Set aside. If you are using a food dye ( which is traditional, then add it now)

If you are making the lemons, follow recipe below and set aside. Both the lemons and the syrup can be made up to a week in advance. The lemons and syrup will keep for 2 weeks in your refrigerator.

Pour the milk into a small saucepan. Whisk in the flour. Whisk well so that there are no lumps. Bring to a simmer briefly. Add the ricotta and whisk. Set aside.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease your pan with butter. Toss the shredded and cut or crumbled Kataifi into a bowl. Melt the 2 cups butter in a microwave or stovetop. Toss all of the butter evenly with the Kataif. Line the bottom of your pan with a layer of Kataif. Spread the ricotta mixture evenly over the shredded dough. Top with the rest of the Kataif. Bake until it appears brown and crisp. This can take anywhere from 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour and 30 minutes. Remove from oven when crispy and browned. Let cool to room temperature. Place your serving platter on top of your cooking dish. Flip the dish, being careful to keep the Knafeh intact for a pretty presentation. The bottom should be equally brown and crunchy. Spoon the syrup over the top. Sprinkle Pistachios on top. Decorate with lemons (optional) This is optional and is not traditionally done. If you want to be extra fancy, consider making candied rose petals the day before, giving them time to dry and use these to decorate also. I just used fresh roses.

Candied Lemon Recipe:

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

5 lemons

Combine the water and the sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer. Stir in the lemon juice. Slice 3 lemons very thin. Add them to the sugar syrup. Do not overlap the lemons. You may need to do 2 batches depending on the size of your pan. Simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes. Remove lemons and dry on a drying rack or on a layer of parchment paper.

You can reserve the syrup for other uses such as making drinks with a sugary lemon simple syrup.

The lemons will keep tightly covered in a tupperware in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.

As you can see, I used fresh roses to decorate my Knafeh, however, it is very special to make candied roses to top it. Just make the roses the day before so that they have time to dry.

Candied Roses:

Very fine castor sugar

Organic mini roses, washed and dried well

2 egg whites

pastry brush

Brush the rose petals with egg whites, sprinkle on extra fine castor sugar. Let dry 24 hours.