Mini Knafeh
Yield: 6 Cups Prep Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 50 minutes
Ingredients
Knafeh
110 g (4 oz) or 1 Batch of Kataifi Dough
50 g (3½ Tbsp) Unsalted Butter, Melted
100 g (1 Cup) Mozzarella, Low-Moisture or Strained
100 g (1 Cup) Ricotta, Full-Fat
15 g (1 Tbsp) Granulated Sugar
Sugar Syrup
60 g (¼ Cup) Granulated Sugar
30 g (30 mL or ⅛ Cup) Water
1 tsp (5 mL) Lemon Juice
Recipe
Grease a muffin pan with butter and preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F).
Strain the Mozzarella with a cheese-cloth or mesh strainer to remove as much moisture as possible. If your ricotta is also very wet, try to strain moisture out of that as well.
In a bowl mix and mush the mozzarella, ricotta, and sugar together with a fork until slightly lumpy. Set aside.
In another bowl combine the Kataifi dough and melted butter. Toss to coat evenly and use your fingers to slightly pull apart the dough strands.
Using about ⅔ of the dough, fill each cup in the muffin pan with dough. Using your fingers spread the dough evenly across the bottom and up the sides. Leave the remaining ⅓ of the dough for the top layer.
Fill each cup as much as possible with the cheese mixture leaving a small edge (about 3mm / ⅛in) at the top without cheese.
Using the remaining dough, place a thin layer on the top of each cup.
Laila’s Tip: Cover the cheese as best as possible to ensure it doesn’t leak out while baking.
Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Rotate the pan half way through baking.
While that bakes prepare the syrup:
In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Heat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves.
Lower the heat and let simmer for 5-7 minutes, until it slightly thickens.
Add the lemon juice and let simmer for another minute. Remove from the heat and let cool.
Once the knafeh are done baking:
Remove the knafeh from the oven and immediately drizzle the syrup over the tops of each cup.
Laila’s Tip: Be careful how much you pour into each cup. You do not want the knafeh swimming in the syrup but you do want it thoroughly soaked.
Let cool for 2-3 minutes then flip the cupcake pan over onto a flat surface. The mini knafeh should easily fall out of the pan but use a fork to help slide them out if they’re sticking.
Serving: Top with some crushed pistachios. Best served fresh and warm.
Storage: Store covered in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Alterations: If you want a stretchier filling, use more mozzarella than ricotta so 150g Mozzarella & 50g Ricotta.