Knafeh Cheesecake

Updated at: Thu, 17 Aug 2023 01:07:07 GMT

Step 1

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease sides of a springform pan (line bottom with parchment paper as well if you want to take it off the bottom)

Step 2

Melt butter with some orange food colouring. Add a little bit of water to make the color brighter. In a medium bowl, massage together the shredded phyllo and melted butter.

Step 3

Press it evenly into a springform pan and bake for about 15 minutes. Take it out and let it cool. Then line the outside of the pan with 2 layers of good aluminum foil. This is to prevent any water leaking into the pan and making the crust soggy.

Step 4

In a large bowl, blend the creamcheese with a handheld mixer or using a stand mixer. Then add in the sugar and mix well.

Step 5

Add in the sour cream, lemon juice, orange blossom water and salt. Blend until incorporated

Step 6

Crack in and mix the eggs in one at a time. Add in the next one just when the last one starts to mix in the batter. Don’t mix too much with the electric mixer because it will incorporate too much air, leading to your cheesecake cracking at the end.

Step 7

Once all the eggs are in, mix gently and thoroughly with a spatula. Do not mix it too much

Step 8

Start boiling the water for the water bath

Step 9

Pour the batter into the pan and pop out the air bubbles

Step 10

Put the cheesecake in a bigger pan for the water bath and place into the oven. The pan should be tall enough to be able to hold enough water to be at least an inch high on the side of the pan.

Step 11

Place both pans into the oven and then pour in the boiling water in the bigger pan (water should be 1 inch high)

Step 12

Bake for 55-70 minutes or until the sides are set and the middle is kind of jiggly

Step 13

Turn off the oven and keep the oven door slightly open with a wooden spoon and let it cool for an hour.

Step 14

Then take the cheesecake out and remove from the water bath and let it cool completely and then refrigerate for at least 4 hours. This slow cool is important so the temperature doesn't change drastically, which leads to cracking.

Step 15

To make the ashta: in a saucepan, add in the milk, heavy cream, cornstarch, flour, sugar and orange blossom water. Whisk it well to remove any lumps. Place it on the stove at medium high heat and cook it while stirring continuously. Once it starts to thicken up and has big bubbles forming, cook for about 30 more seconds and then take it off the heat. Pour into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap and let it cool.

Step 16

Tear up the shredded phyllo for the topping and massage it with some melted butter and food colouring. In a pan on medium high heat, toast this mixture until it becomes nice and crispy. Set aside to cool

Step 17

To assemble, take out the cheesecake from the pan and place it in a serving plate. Spread the ashta on top and coat the top with the toasted kataifi mixture. Sprinkle some pistachios and rose petals and enjoy!

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