Mouhalabieh

The Lebanese recipe of Mouhalabieh is a delightful dessert for sweet lovers. This delicious flan is prepared with milk, thickened with corn flour or rice flour then flavored with both orange blossom and rose water. It is decorated with pistachios and can be topped with syrup if you desire.

This special and distinctive dessert will make you admire the Lebanese cuisine because of its simplicity and its amazing taste at the same time.

As you noticed from my other blogs we have a variation of flan or pudding recipes like moghly and aysh el saraya. Each one of them is distinguished with different aroma and savour.

Prep. time: 15 mins

Serves: 6

INGREDIENTS:

3 1/2 cups of milk

1/2 cooking cream

4 heaped tbsp corn flour

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 tbsp orange blossom water

1 tbsp rose water

4 small rocks Mastic pounded if available

1/2 cup unsalted Pistachios

The syrup:

1 cups sugar

1/2 cup water

1/2 tsp lemon juice

1 tbsp orange blossom water

1/2 tbsp rose water

DIRECTIONS:

to make the syrup put the sugar, water and the lemon juice in a small cooking pot over medium heat stirring to dissolve, boil for 5 mins. Add the rose water and orange blossom water then set aside to cool

To prepare the flan: in a medium size pot pour the milk, the cream then add the cornstarch and the sugar. It can be prepared with milk only if the cream is not convenient. Mix the ingredients using a whisk while cold then put over medium heat and stir continuously until it starts to thicken. Add the orange blossom water and rose water and the mastic if available. you have to pound or smash the mastic rocks and combine them with a teaspoon of sugar then add them to the mixture, it will add to it an amazing aroma. Boil for two more minutes over low heat then remove. Pour the mixture into individual bowls. Set aside to cool then put in the fridge for at least two hours. Chop the pistachios coarsely then sprinkle on top of the mouhalabieh flan and drizzle a bit of syrup if desired before serving.

Mouhalabieh is a very simple and delicious Lebanese dessert. It can be prepared ahead of time to cool and be ready when your guests come and they are going to love it. Don’t hesitate and give it a try.

ENJOY!!!