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Middle Eastern Kunafa or Knafeh

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The best kunafa in a glass plate topped with crushed pistachio
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Here is the best healthy recipe for kunafa. A quick and easy recipe done with simple ingredients that you can easily find in your fridge!

If you have visited any of the middle eastern countries, then you must have heard about the supreme Middle Eastern Kunafa or Knafeh. With its variety of spellings from kunafa to knafeh, kanafeh, kunafeh, or even konafi, etc, this middle eastern knafeh is the top-notch of all Arabic sweets and for that is, a must-try.

Where is kunafa originally from? Kunafa is a famous pastry dessert in the levant that combines in its traditional form, kataifi pastry, the shredded phyllo dough, or fine semolina dough. It is stuffed with a cheese filling and soaked in sweet sugar syrup. The syrup is usually scented with rose water or in a few areas with orange blossom water to upscale the taste.

two pieces of kunafeh naameh on plates

If you think that making Middle Eastern kunafa at home is a hassle you need to think twice. If you want to learn how to make kunafa at home in an easy manner or even how to make kunafa without knafeh dough, then reading this article till the end is a must. The reason is that I saved you a healthier version of this delicious Arabic dessert. Yes, you will never need to count your calories when you opt for this delicious homemade light cheese knafeh. A quick and easy recipe done with simple ingredients that you can easily find in your fridge!

What are the types of Kunafa?

– Cheese kunafa na’ameh or knafeh bil jibn is made with semolina dough and filled with cheese, mainly Nabulsi cheese or Akkawi cheese.

– Cheese kunafa or knafeh bil jibn made with kataifi dough and filled as well with Nabulsi or Akawi cheese

– Kunafa Nabulsiyah is similar to the kataifi dough cheese kunafa, yet it comes in an orange shade of color.

– Kunafa with ashta, a thick cream cooked with milk, sugar, and semolina.

front view of a knafeh plate

What are the ingredients for kunafa?

  • The dough: depending on the type of kunafa you would like to prepare. If you desire to prepare the kunafa with kataifi dough, then you will have to purchase it from Middle Eastern stores. You can either use it as strands and end up with a crispy kunafa or process it and end up with fine kunafa or known as knafeh na’ameh. You can’t find kataifi dough in the market? No worries, keep reading to learn how you can use toast bread to make your dough.
  • Butter: You can use either ghee or unsalted butter.
  • Sugar syrup: You can prepare it at home. I have listed the details below.
  • Cheese: You will have to choose a sweet cheese for this kind of dessert.

What is the best cheese for knafeh?

In the Middle East, kunafa is made with specific kunafa cheeses, mainly Nabulsi or Akkawi cheese. However, these two types of cheese of known for being salty. Hence, if you want to use one of them, then make sure to desalt them. The process of desalting cheese involves keeping the cheese in the water for a couple of hours then changing the water and repeating the process until the cheese is not salty.

However, if you cannot find either of them in the market, then you can use mozzarella instead. Pat to dry the fresh mozzarella and get rid of excess liquid then add it to the pastry tray. To prevent the cheese from hardening after it cools, you can either add ricotta cheese as a fast option or add my quick homemade cream as detailed below.

raw tray of kunafa

How to make easy knafeh without knafeh dough?

First, prepare the sugar syrup and put it aside to cool.

In a food processor, process the sliced bread along with the butter or ghee. Once done, bring the mixture to a pan and press them with the palm of your hand, then add your mozzarella.

Next, prepare the creamy milk. In a cooking pot, combine milk and sugar in a pan and stir well to make sure that the sugar is dissolved. Then add semolina and continue stirring. Once the milk starts to thicken, add rose water and stop stirring.

Add a layer of the creamy milk above the mozzarella and enter the tray into the oven.

Serve it hot with sugar syrup.

Bon Appetit.

Baked knafeh in a tray

FAQs about making this easy homemade kunafa

Can I make it ahead?

Sure. Prepare the sugar syrup and kunafa tray in advance and bake the tray 30 minutes before serving. You can store the unbaked knafeh in the fridge and remove it 30 minutes before baking.

How to store this delicious Arabic dessert?

Like many other Arabic sweets, you can store knafeh in the fridge in an air-tight container and keep it for 3 to 4 days.

top view of a kunafa piece in a plate

Can I freeze kunafa?

Yes, you can freeze it unbaked. Wrap it with cling film and put it in the freezer. Just make sure to thaw it in the fridge for a day before baking.

How to reheat kunafa?

I like to reheat kunafa in the oven at a low temperature. However, you can always use your microwave to reheat a slice for 15 to 20 seconds or depending on the power of your microwave.

Do you like Arabic sweets? Check out these recipes:

  • Lebanese maamoul cookies
  • The best Lebanese atayef
  • Healthy molasses sponge cake

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Middle Eastern Kunafa or Knafeh

The best kunafa in a glass plate topped with crushed pistachio

Here is the best healthy recipe for kunafa. A quick and easy recipe done with simple ingredients that you can easily find in your fridge!

15 minutes
45 minutes
Easy

Ingredients

  • 300g sliced bread
  • 100g butter or buttery spread
  • 300g mozzarella cheese
  • 3 cups milk (I use lactose-free milk)
  • 1 cup semolina
  • 3 tbsp sugar
  • 1 tbsp rose water

 

Sugar syrup:

  • half a cup of water
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

 

For garnish:

A handful of crushed pistachios

 

Instructions

Prepare the sugar syrup:

  1. Combine sugar and water in a casserole.
  2. Stir to dissolve the sugar in the water and bring to a boil.
  3. Let the syrup boil for 3 minutes then turn off the heat and add the lemon juice.

 

Prepare the kunafa:

  1. Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
  2. In a food processor, add sliced bread and butter.
  3. Process until you end up with a finely blended mixture.
  4. Bring the mixture to a pan and press them with the palm of your hand.
  5. Add a layer of mozzarella and set aside
  6. In a cooking pot, combine the milk and sugar
  7. Start adding semolina and bring the mixture to a boil.
  8. Keep stirring until you get a creamy texture.
  9. Add the rose water and turn off the heat.
  10. Pour the hot mixture above the mozzarella.
  11. Transfer the tray to the oven, with the fire from the lower side only.
  12. Bake until the bottom turns out golden. You will be able to see a gold color crust all around the tray. This will take between 30 to 45 minutes depending on your oven.
  13. Flip it over onto a serving platter
  14. Drizzle sugar syrup on top and garnish with crushed pistachios.
  15. Serve it hot.
  16. Bon Appetit.

 

Notes

  • You can serve the kunafa with extra syrup so that guests can adjust the amount based on their taste buds.
  • Feel free to add more cheese based on how thick you would like the cheese to be in the kunafa.
  • Make sure to desalt the cheese if you are using Nabulsi or Akkawi cheese.
  • If you have whole pistachio kernels, transfer them to a food processor and pulse a few times to end up with crushed pistachios.

 

Nutrition

Calories: 433 kcal per serving | Serving size: 1 slice | Number of servings: 12

Total Fat 18 g | Saturated Fat 6 g | Cholesterol 18 mg | Sodium 276 mg | Potassium 81 mg | Total Carbohydrate 47 g | Dietary Fiber 3 g | Sugars 23 g | Protein 16 g | Vitamin A: 10% | Vitamin C: 0% | Calcium: 22% | Iron: 3%

* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

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