Main Ingredients:

See below ingredients and instructions of the recipe

Cooking Preparation of the Recipe:

Karen Mintzias

----------------------CUSTARD FILLING---------------------------
4 c Milk 1 pn Salt
3/4 c Cornflour 1/2 c Sugar
4 Eggs; beaten 1 ts Vanilla essence

-----------------------KATAIFI CRUST----------------------------
500 g Kataifi (shredded pastry) 3/4 c Unsalted butter; melted

---------------------------SYRUP--------------------------------
2 c Sugar 1 Piece of cinnamon bark
1 1/2 c Water 3 ts Lemon juice
1 Thin strip lemon rind

Oven temperature: 190 C (375 F) Cooking time: 1 hour

Combine milk and cornflour in a heavy pan. Blend in beaten eggs and
add salt and sugar. Place over medium heat and stir constantly until
thickened and bubbling. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla essence
and cover top of custard with buttered paper to prevent a skin
forming.

Place kataifi in a large bowl and gently separate strands with
fingers. Grease a 20 x 28 cm (8 x 11 inch) oven dish with some of the
butter. Put half the kataifi in the base, pressing it down to make
it compact. Drizzle 1/4 cup butterr evenly over it. Pour custard
filling over kataifi, spreading it evenly. Top with remaining
kataifi. Spread evenly and pat down gently. Pour remaining melted
butter evenly over top. Bake in a moderately hot oven for 45 minutes
until golden brown. Remove from oven and leave until cool.

Dissolve sugar in water over medium heat, add lemon rind and cinnamon
bark and bring to the boil. Add lemon juice and boil over medium
heat for 15 minutes, skimming when necessary. Do not stir once syrup
is boiling. Strain hot syrup over cooled pastry. Leave until cold
and cut into diamond shapes to serve.

Note: The previous recipe is the traditional way in which this
dessert is made. As the custard and syrup soften the kataifi, many
good cooks use the following method for a crisp finish:

Prepare the syrup as directed above and leave until cool. Place the
kataifi in a bowl and loosen stands. Pour on 1/2 cup melted, unsalted
butter and mix with fingers to coat strands. Spread kataifi in two
buttered 20 x 28 cm (8 x 11 inch) straight-sided oven dishes and
press down to make it compact. Bake in a moderately hot oven for
20-25 minutes until golden - take care that it does not become too
brown. Remove from the oven and pour cooled syrup evenly over hot
kataifi in each dish. Cover each dish with a tea towel so that
kataifi softens slightly, otherwise it will be difficult to cut.
Make custard as directed in previous recipe and pour while hot onto
kataifi in one dish. Invert other dish of kataifi on top of the
custard. Leave uncovered until cool, then cut into diamond shapes to
serve.

From: "The Complete Middle East Cookbook" by Tess Mallos ISBN: 1
86302 069 1

Typed for you by Karen Mintzias

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