Cheese Kunafa Recipe (Kunefe)

5 from 48 votes

A delicious Middle Eastern dessert made with crispy katiafy dough filled with gooey, creamy cheese and sweetened with syrup.

Prep Time30

Cook Time45

Total Time1 15

Course: desserts, sweets

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Servings: slices

Calories: 519kcal

Whisk water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. Stir lemon juice and rose water into the syrup. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Melt the ghee in a small saucepan or microwave. Brush the bottom of a 9" cake pan with melted ghee or butter.

Defrost kataifi according to package instructions, then shred kataifi dough into smaller pieces using a food processor, a sharp knife, or a pair of kitchen shears.
Add kataifi to a large bowl and pour ghee over it. Work the ghee into all the strands. Add half of the buttered pastry into the prepared pan. Press firmly with your hands or the bottom of a glass to compact it. Work some of it up the sides of the tray.

Blot each round of mozzarella cheese between paper towels to remove excess moisture, then arrange in the tray. Spoon clotted cream over it and cover with the remaining kataifi. Press lightly to compact.

Bake kunafa in the oven for 45-60 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately pour at least half of the cooled syrup over the hot kunafa. Serve the extra syrup on the side.
Cool for 10 minutes. Place a platter over the pan then flip it or serve it straight out of the pan. Decorate with ground pistachio, slice into wedges, and serve while the cheese is warm and stretchy.

Although kataifi is often referred to as shredded phyllo dough, don't attempt to make some by shredding phyllo dough. Unlike phyllo dough, katiafi is spun and is made of fine strands, not strips of phyllo.
It is recommended that you defrost frozen kataifi dough in the fridge until it's ready to use.
You can prepare kunefe ahead of time and freeze it until you're ready to bake it. Bring it to room temperature before baking it.
The top of kunefe is usually darker and crispier than the bottom. For this reason, you may choose NOT to flip it.
Another option is to flip the kunefe onto another metal tray. If the bottom needs browning, you can slip it back into the oven for a few more minutes.
If you are not serving the kunafa all at once, don't add the syrup; instead, drizzle approximately 2 tablespoons over each slice before serving. This will keep the kunafa crunchy.
Edible roses can be used to garnish kunefe.
Store kunafa leftovers in an air-tight container for approximately 3 days.