Om Ali - Phylo Pastry Creamed Pudding

1 package of frozen phylo sheet

¾ cups of mixed chopped nuts (walnuts, pistachios and hazelnuts)

3-4 tablespoons golden raisins

2 tablespoons coconut flakes or desiccated coconuts

3 cups milk

½ cup heavy cream

1 cup sugar

 

About the image above: Om Ali

Preheat the baking oven to at least 180°C -185°C. Grease a tray and spread the phylo on tray. As soon as the phylo dough becomes softer and ready to bake, place it in the oven until it turns to a bit golden and crisp. Watch it carefully. Take out from the oven when it becomes crisp.

Mixture 1

In a clean bowl: break the crisp phylo and combine the nuts, golden raisin, desiccated coconuts and ¼ cup of sugar.

Mixture 2

In a pot: combine ½ cup of sugar and milk and bring them to the boil, stir continuously until the sugar completely dissolved.

Mixture 3

In clean bowl: beat the cream and ¼ cup of sugar until become stiff and keep aside.

Prepare 6 earthen cups and fill each cup with mixture 1 evenly. Pour the mixture 2 over the phylo-nuts mixture. Spread the mixture 3 over each cup evenly and place the cups under the oven salamander or over with fire top about 10-15 minutes or until turns to golden. Serve immediately while hot. Makes 6 servings

Helpful Hints

You can prepare the mixture 1 earlier but do not combine with other mixture.

Hot Om Ali will taste better that the cold one.

If the phylo pastry dough is not available, you may replace the phylo dough with shredded crisp croissant. The taste and texture will be slightly the same.

Super Chef Diary: Kunafa - Bird's Nest Pastry

Super Chef Diary: Kunafa - Bird's Nest Pastry: 1 pack of kutaifi (Middle East style of very fine vermicelli or shredded phylo dough) 1 cup clarified butter 18-24 pieces whole almond...

Kunafa - Bird's Nest Pastry

1 pack of kutaifi (Middle East style of very fine vermicelli or shredded phylo dough)

1 cup clarified butter

18-24 pieces whole almond or whole pistachio

About the image above: Kunafa borma

Grease a tray with clarified butter. On the table, gently loosen the kutaifi (vermicelli), with your fingers, form the vermicelli to a small bird’s nest and arrange them on the greased tray. Repeat the sequence until all of the vermicelli formed into a small bird’s nest. Place almond or pistachio to every nest and baked it in the oven until golden browns in the surface, about 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with syrup. Serve the kunafa while it warm or you need to warm up before serving

About the image above: vermicelli for kunafa

About the image above: 'kataifi' vermicelli packaging

For the syrup

1 kilogram sugar

½ kilogram water

200 grams glucose

1-2 pieces juice of lime

Combine the ingredients and dissolve them in a pot over the heat slowly. Take out from the heat after the sugar dissolved.

Helpful Hints

If you need more sweet you should allow sprinkling more syrup.

Super Chef Diary: Super Chef Diary: Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters

Super Chef Diary: Super Chef Diary: Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters: Super Chef Diary: Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters : 2 cups flour, shifted 8-10 eggs 2 cups water 200 grams margarine 2 cup oil to fry Bring a...

Basbousa - Semolina Cake

3 cups semolina flour

1½ cups desiccated coconut

1½ cups butter

1-1½ cups milk

3 tablespoons plain yogurt

1-1½ cups sugar

¼ cup chopped hazelnuts

¼ cup slivered almond or chopped to top the cake

2 tablespoon butter to grease the baking tray

In a pot on medium heat, combine the butter and bring to the boil. In meanwhile, combine the semolina, desiccated coconut and sugar. Lower the heat and add the semolina mixture slowly and the rest of the ingredients to the boiling milk. Mix them well to make sure the semolina will not burnt.

About the image above: basbousa – semolina and coconut cake

Grease the tray and pour the mixture into the tray and distribute the mixture evenly. Bake the cake until golden brown about 35-40 minutes at 350°C.

When the cake start to turn to golden brown, remove from the oven and sprinkle the nuts on the top of the cake. Use your finger to press the nuts gently over the cake. Then let the cake to cool down for about 1½ -2 hours. Sprinkle with syrup or soak it and then bake the cake one more time at 180°C-200°C for about 5-8 minutes or until it turn to really golden brown. Slice the cake to serve either warm or cold. Sprinkle with some toasted nuts on top. Makes about 46-54 pieces.

For the syrup

1 kilogram sugar

½ kilogram water

200 grams glucose

1-2 pieces juice of lime

Combine the ingredients and dissolve them in a pot over the heat slowly. Take out from the heat after the sugar dissolved.

Helpful Hints

You will prepare the cake a bit earlier if you have to serve the cake for some special theme party. The cake can keep for about 4-5 days in good temperature fridge.

Super Chef Diary: Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters

Super Chef Diary: Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters: 2 cups flour, shifted 8-10 eggs 2 cups water 200 grams margarine 2 cup oil to fry Bring a heavy saucepan to medium high heat w...

Ballah Hassem - Sweet Fritters

2 cups flour, shifted

8-10 eggs

2 cups water

200 grams margarine

2 cup oil to fry

Bring a heavy saucepan to medium high heat with water and margarine to boil. Add the shifted flour slowly and stir with wooden spoon until the dough becoming stiff and form a ball. Remove the dough from the head and place into a clean bowl to cool it down.

About the image above: balah hassem

Combine the eggs into the dough one by one; make sure the dough is soft and elastic. Filled a pot with frying oil and let the oil hot at the temperature to fry the dough. Filled the dough into clean piping bag, and gently drop the dough into hot oil. Let do this sequence until all of the dough has been fried. Turn the fried dough and make sure it cooks from every angle to golden brown, use a skimmer to turn the dough. Remove from the hot oil when it cooked and place them on a tray with paper napkin underneath to absorb the excess of the oil.

The next step is to dip the fritters into thick heavy syrup for 1-2 minutes to coat the fritters. You can serve warm or cold.  Makes about 25-30 pieces.

For the syrup

1 kilogram sugar

½ kilogram water

200 grams glucose

1-2 pieces juice of lime

Combine the ingredients and dissolve them in a pot over the heat slowly. Take out from the heat after the sugar dissolved.

Helpful Hints

Prepare the syrup earlier at least a day before so easier for you when you prepare the fritters. You can keep the syrupy fritters in your fridge for longer self-life of 3-4 days.

If you do not like with syrup, you can dust some powdered sugar after you fry.