Levantine cuisine · Desserts & Sweets

Osmalieh

Two crisply baked kadayif layers with cold ashta cream in between, topped with syrup and pistachios.

Ingredients · for 8 servings

• 400 g kadayif pastry strands
• 200 g butter
• 1 l whole milk
• 60 g cornstarch
• 150 ml cream
• 350 g sugar
• 200 ml water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 tbsp orange blossom water
• 200 g pistachios

Instructions

1. Cook sugar, water and lemon juice for 10 min. into a slightly thick syrup, stir in 1 tbsp orange blossom water and chill the syrup.
2. For the ashta, warm 800 ml milk with the cream, dissolve the cornstarch lump-free in the remaining cold milk, stir it in and simmer for 8–10 min. while stirring constantly, until a very thick cream forms.
3. Stir in the remaining orange blossom water, spread the cream into a shallow dish, cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface and chill for at least 2 hrs.
4. Melt the butter, pull the kadayif strands apart, mix thoroughly with the butter and press firmly and evenly into two buttered 24 cm pans.
5. Bake both layers in an oven preheated to 180 °C for 30–35 min. until golden brown and crisp throughout, then let cool completely – assembling them warm would make the pastry soggy.
6. Spread one layer with the cold ashta, place the second on top, drizzle with the cold syrup, generously sprinkle with chopped pistachios and cut into pieces right away.