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Ramadan Recipes:  Best ever Konafa with Ricotta and Cream

Konafa with cream and ricotta filling and basbousa with almonds. The picture gives a good idea of the thickness of the konafa when putting the ingredients together. The thinner it is, the more elegant.

With such a steep history, it’s not surprising that Egypt also has colorful and sweet recipes.  Konafa is one of the most favored deserts in ramadan.  It ‘s done in all sorts of ways, with nuts, with cream,  with  honey, and even with fruits such as mangoes.   My favorite one is konafa  filled with cream and ricotta cheese.  It’s so easy to make and isabsolutely delicious.  Bel Hana wil Shifa.

Ingredients:

1/2 kilo konafa

250 gm butter

200 gm cream

200 ricotta cheese

Syrup

1 cup of sugar

1/2 cup water

juice of 1/2 lemon

Method

warm oven to 350.  Melt or soften butter in pan.  Shred the konafa either by hand or with scissors then mix well with butter. Divide konafa in half.  Lay one half in round or rectangular pan then press gently with palm of hand on the surface. Save the other half.  Meanwhile mix ricotta and cream in bowl. (some people prefer to put a little less cheese then the cream). With a spoon spread cheese mixture on the konafa laying out evenly with the back of the spoon. Lay the other half of the konafa on top of the filling  then again press down gently with the palm of your hand and push into the oven.  Depending on the pan you use,(I use tefal), I get it out when its sides shrink and turn into a dark golden color. Flip on prepared serving plate with golden bottom side up, leave it to cool for a minute then pour cold syrup all over.

If your pan is aluminum its surface might turn gold first ( I haven’t tried- I’d appreciate it someone lets me know what happens in an aluminum pan).

Syrup

Heat mixed sugar and water until sugar completely dissolves. Add lemon juice. Leave to boil until mixture thickens.  Test that it is the right thickness by putting a drop on a tilted surface, if it’s  runny, then leave it some more.  If it’s kind of heavy and doesn’t really run then you are done.  Leave mixture to cool completely before adding to konafa.

Hints:

-dip the spoon in a glass of water before spreading the cheese mixture, otherwise the filling will stick to the spoon along with the konafa.

-Either the syrup or the konafa must be very hot when combining, other wise things will get soggy.

-You don’t have to use all the syrup, but pour enough to make it moist/ or to tast.  You could always heat the syrup and add later when konafa cools to adjust to our taste.

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