Knafeh (Kunafah) - Middle Eastern Recipe

Knafeh (Kunafah)

🌍 Middle Eastern, Nablus, Palestine (also Levant broadly) Difficulty: ●●●○○

Nablus is the global capital of knafeh; the white Nabulsi cheese used in authentic knafeh is unique to the Palestinian city and cannot be exactly replicated elsewhere.

Ingredients

• 500 g kataifi (shredded wheat pastry)
• 400 g Nabulsi cheese (or fresh mozzarella mixed with ricotta), sliced or crumbled
• 150 g clarified butter (samneh), melted
• Orange food colouring (traditional for the golden top)
• Pistachio, finely ground, for garnish
• (Simple syrup) 300 g sugar
• 200 ml water
• 1 tbsp rose water
• 1 tbsp orange blossom water
• Squeeze of lemon

Method

1. Making — Make syrup: boil sugar and water 5 minutes; add rose water, orange blossom water, and lemon. Cool.
2. Rubbing — Rub clarified butter into kataifi strands until well coated.
3. Mixing — Mix orange food colouring with a little butter; combine with half the kataifi.
4. Pressing — Press coloured kataifi into greased heavy round baking pan.
5. Spreading — Spread cheese evenly over kataifi base.
6. Topping — Top with remaining (uncoloured) kataifi; press firmly.
7. Baking — Bake at 200°C (400°F) for 25–30 minutes until bottom is golden (the coloured kataifi becomes the top when inverted).
8. Step 8 — Invert onto large serving plate.
9. Pouring — Pour cold syrup over hot knafeh.
10. Decorating — Decorate with ground pistachio; serve immediately.

Tags: kataifi, nabulsi cheese, clarified butter, orange food colouring, pistachio · Source: Brittani's Almanac