Submitted by: Madame Fahimeh | Date Added: 4 Aug 2009 Listed in: Lebanese Desserts . . . . . yield: ? active time: ? total time: ?
. . . . . added by: Madame Fahimeh cuisine: ?
Ingredients
• 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast (scant)
• 1 1/2 cups lukewarm water
• 1 cup all-purpose flour, plus up to
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 pinch salt
• butter (for cooking)
• peanut oil or vegetable oil (for frying)
• 2/3 cup coarsely grated Knafe halloumi cheese or ricotta salata
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar
Preparation
• In a medium bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the flour and
salt and stir well. Let stand, loosely covered, to ferment for 45
minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling: Mix the ingredients in a bowl until you have a homogeneous mass. Set aside.
• When ready to proceed, heat a small heavy skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes.
• Lightly brush the skillet with butter. Stir the batter well to blend.
Scoop up about 2 1/2 Tablespoons batter and pour onto the skillet to
make a 4-inch round or an oval about 4 inches long.
• Cook until bubbles appear on the top and the top has a matte dull
surface, about 1 minute and 20 seconds. The underside will be just
touched with the palest brown. Transfer to a plate cooked side down.
• Scoop up 1 teaspoon filling and squeeze it in your hand into a firm
oblong, then place it on the cooked pancake. Immediately fold the
pancake over and pinch the edges together to make a sealed half moon
shape. (The trick with atayef is to fill them while the top of the
pancake is still warm so the edges stick together well.)
• Set aside on a plate, and repeat with the remaining batter and
filling. (Once you get comfortable with the sequence of steps, you may
want to have two skillets going at once, to speed production. But even
with only one person and one skillet, you can get all the atayef made in
a short time.).
• The filled pancakes can sit, loosely covered, for up to 3 hours before being fried.
• When ready to proceed, pour about 1 inch of peanut or vegetable oil
into a deep fryer or stable wok or other deep frying arrangement, and
heat to 375°F Use a thermometer to check, or the following test: Stick a
chopstick vertically into the hot oil. If bubbles come rising up beside
it, the oil is hot enough. Have a slotted spoon by your stove top as
well as two paper towel-lined plates.
• Slide the first half moon into the hot oil. It should bubble a little.
Then slide in another, and another. Each should cook for about 30
seconds, until lightly browned; turn each over in the oil after about 15
seconds. With the slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel-lined plate.
Fry the remaining half moons in the same manner. Serve hot or warm,
with tea or coffee. Makes 12 to 15 half moon shaped pancakes.
Additional Notes
Its a good idea to have multiple pans going at one time to make the cook ... otherwise the 2 hours could turn into a half a day. :)