Ingredients:
Serves 6-8
- 1 litre full cream milk
- 600ml thickened cream
- 1 cup fine semolina
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 1 tablespoon rosewater
- 300g cornflake crumbs
- 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
Simple Syrup:
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon rosewater
First the syrup:
- Combine the sugar, water & lemon juice in a small pot.
- Bring it up to a boil then simmer gently for approx. 10 minutes.
- Turn off the heat & stir through rose water.
- Pour into a jug & cool completely before using. This will thicken slightly upon standing.
For the Knafeh:
- First toast the crumbs in 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter for a few minutes.
- In a 25cm serving tray or vessel of choice place half the crumbs & spread evenly. Reserve other half for topping.
For the semolina custard:
- Combine milk, cream, semolina, sugar & cornflour in a pot. While the heat is off use a whisk to mix until combined.
- Turn the heat on med/high & stir until heated through & very thick. Remove from heat & add the rosewater
- Pour the semolina custard over the base of the cornflake crumbs. Top with remaining crumbs.
Serving suggestions:
- To serve warm, place in a 180c oven & cook for 15 minutes. Rest for 10 minutes before slicing.
- To serve at room temperature or chilled, allow mixture to cool on the counter then refrigerate
- Alternatively you can gently heat single portions for 30 seconds in the microwave.
Notes:
- If you wish to add cheese to the knafeh, use use akkawi cheese (preferred) which can be found at any Middle Eastern grocer, alternately use shredded mozzarella. Add half the semolina pudding to the crumbs scatter over approx 1.5 cups shredded cheese then pour over the rest of the knafeh mix. This variation must be served warm.
- You can turn this dessert into dessert cups by simply leaving out the cornflour as it doesn’t need to set in a tray. Can be served at room temperature or chilled this way
- To serve in individual moulds as shown, I used 10cm springform tins & served the knafeh chilled.
