This vegan knafeh makes for a tasty Ramadan dessert. It's crunchy, buttery & sweet on the outside, with melty-cheesy-goodness on the inside. Top it all with a rose water flavored syrup and crushed pistachios for a festive and impressive dessert!
What is Knafeh?
On the weekend nights during Ramadan, my husband and I go over to his family's house to break our fast and eat dinner together. And last weekend, I brought a beloved Middle Eastern classic - knafeh! (also spelled kunafa).
If you've never tried this delicious dessert before, you're in for a treat! It's made from silky shredded phyllo dough that gets tossed with melted butter. It's then baked with a layer of cream cheese or cheese in the middle. A sweet rose water syrup is drenched on top to balance out the buttery-cheesy-goodness.
Knafeh is crunchy on the outside with both buttery and sweet flavors melded together. The inside is luxuriously creamy from the melted cream cheese or cheese. And since both my father-in-law and I cannot digest dairy easily, I decided to make vegan knafeh!
Ingredients
- Shredded phyllo dough - you can find this in most major grocery stores; we usually get ours in the frozen section at our local halal store
- Vegan butter - makes the phyllo dough super crispy and golden brown as it bakes
- Vegan cream cheese - allow your cream cheese to sit out at room temperature to soften so it's easier to spread
- Water - mixes with the sugar to make a simple syrup
- Granulated sugar - sweetens the syrup
- Rose water - adds a hint of rose flavor, which is a traditional flavor in Middle Easter cuisine
How to Make Vegan Knafeh
Prep the oven and baking dish: Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 11-inch or 12-inch round baking dish, or a 9-inch x 13-inch rectangle baking dish.
Pull apart the phyllo strands: Use your hands to gently pull apart the strands of shredded phyllo dough, since they'll likely all be stuck together.
Add the melted butter: In a large mixing bowl, mix the shredded phyllo dough and melted butter until all the phyllo dough strands are well-coated.
Add half the phyllo into the pan: In the greased baking dish, spread out half the buttered phyllo dough strands. Pat it down in an even layer on the bottom and part way up the sides of the baking dish.
Spread the cream cheese: Dollop the softened vegan cream cheese into the baking dish, then use a spatula or butter knife to spread it out in an even layer.
Top with more phyllo stands: Spread out the remaining half of the buttered phyllo dough strands and gently press it down with your hands.
Bake and cool: Bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, until it is a warm golden color. Let cool for 10 minutes in the baking dish.
Make the syrup: In a small sauce pan on medium-high heat, simmer the water and sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the rose water. Set aside.
Turn out the knafeh: Flip the knafeh upside down onto a large serving plate.
Top with syrup: Then top with the syrup.
Top with pistachios: Top with chopped pistachios and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- After allowing the baked knafeh to cool for a few minutes, you have to flip it. That's right, we are introducing acrobatics into our dessert game (just kidding). Place a large, flat serving plate upside down on the top of the knafeh. Firmly grasp both the sides of the baking dish and the bottom of the serving dish (I suggest using oven mitts). Say "Bismillah" and in one quick, confident motion, flip the knafeh upside down and onto the serving plate. Give it a few strong taps on the sides and the bottom of the baking dish, then gently pull the baking dish up and away.
- Use your hands to gently spread the strands of phyllo dough apart. Be careful not to tear it too much, since the strands are pretty fragile.
Recipe Variations
- You can substitute orange blossom water for rose water in the syrup.
- Often times saffron gets added to the buttery phyllo dough, to make it a deeper orange color. But this is optional, since saffron can be quite expensive.
- To make this vegan more traditional, just substitute the vegan butter and vegan cream cheese for normal dairy alternatives.
- Instead of pistachios, you can top your vegan knafeh with chopped walnuts, almonds, cashews or even dried rose petals.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, this dish whether made vegan or not is vegetarian, since it contains butter and cream cheese but no meat.
Kunafa dough is made from thinly shredded phyllo dough called Kataifi. It has a pretty bland flavor on its own. But when mixed with butter, cream cheese, and syrup it is delicious.
Both knafeh and baklava are baked Middle Eastern desserts that use phyllo dough, and are soaked in syrup. Knafeh however is filled with cream cheese, while baklava is filled with pistachios, butter and sugar.
Kunafa is a dessert, so any type of sweet cheese works well. A close substitute found in most stores is mozzarella. But I like using vegan cream cheese because it gets super soft and creamy when it's baked, and adds a tangy flavor.
More Ramadan and Iftar Dessert Ideas!
- Baklava Cheesecake
- Vegan Baklava
- Light and Sweet Date Cake
- Semolina Cake (Basbousa)
- Date Cookies (Mamool)
Vegan Knafeh (Kunafa)
Ingredients
Dough
- 1 pound shredded phyllo dough
- 1 cup vegan butter, melted
Filling
- 12 ounces vegan cream cheese, softened at room temperature
Syrup
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon rose water
Topping
- chopped pistachios
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 11-inch or 12-inch round baking dish, or a 9-inch x 13-inch rectangle baking dish.
- Use your hands to gently pull apart the strands of shredded phyllo dough, since they'll likely all be stuck together.
- Melt the butter in the microwave or on the stovetop. In a large mixing bowl, mix the shredded phyllo dough and melted butter until all the phyllo dough strands are well-coated.
- In the greased baking dish, spread out half the buttered phyllo dough strands. Pat it down in an even layer on the bottom and part way up the sides of the baking dish.
- Dollop the softened vegan cream cheese into the baking dish, then use a spatula or butter knife to spread it out in an even layer.
- Spread out the remaining half of the buttered phyllo dough strands and gently press it down with your hands.
- Bake for about 40 to 50 minutes, until it is a warm golden color. Let cool for 10 minutes in the baking dish.
- While the knafeh is baking, prepare the syrup. In a small sauce pan on medium-high heat, simmer the water and sugar until the sugar is fully dissolved, about 5 minutes.Remove from the heat and stir in the rose water. Set aside.
- Flip the knafeh upside down onto a large serving plate (see blog post above for tips). Then top with the syrup. It may seem like a lot of syrup, but the phyllo dough will absorb it. You may need to spoon syrup on top, then wait a minute for it to soak in before spooning more on.
- Top with chopped pistachios and enjoy!
Alison
Looks delicious
Humbly Homemade
Thank you so much!
Yum-number1
I've tried knafeh at a restaurant before and it was SO delicious. Great job for making this vegan and the pictures are so awesome!
Humbly Homemade
Thank you so much! Let me know if you try this recipe! ðŸ˜