Labneh halawet el jibn, blood orange, almond and olive oil
Ayesha Kalaji uses a labneh mousse to fill a halawet el jibn (a Syrian dessert made of a sweetened semolina. Cheese dough) and serves this with an intense blood orange sorbet, a honey tuile and almond and sumac crumble.
- 1 blood orange, zested
- 1 tsp sumac
- 25g of caster sugar
- 1g of sorbet stabiliser
- 20g of liquid glucose
- 120g of water
- 185g of blood orange juice, (about 3 oranges) strained, plus more as needed, peel reserved
- 70g of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 sprig of thyme
- 1/2 gelatine leaf, gold grade
- 25g of water
- 30g of isomalt sugar
- 22g of caster sugar
- 8g of glucose syrup
- 130g of caster sugar
- 65ml of water
- 1 sprig of thyme, small
- 250g of double cream
- 20g of icing sugar, or more or less depending on taste
- 1/4 tsp orange blossom water
- 250g of labneh
- 95g of water
- 25g of fine semolina, fine
- 10g of caster sugar
- 80g of low-moisture mozzarella, finely grated
- 40g of plain flour
- 40g of egg white
- 30g of icing sugar
- 8g of honey
- 40g of unsalted butter, melted
- 50g of caster sugar
- 50g of unsalted butter, softened
- 50g of plain flour
- 50g of ground almonds
- 1/2 tsp sumac
- 1 blood orange, segmented
- flaked almonds, toasted
- lemon balm cress
- sumac
- For the blood orange sorbet, put the zest and sumac in a bowl with the sugar and stabiliser. Rub together to combine
- Add the mixture to a small pan with the liquid glucose and water. Heat until the sugar is dissolved and the temperature reaches 85°C
- Cool the sorbet base until the temperature is below 25°C, then mix in the blood orange juice (reserving the peel). Adjust the acidity if needed with more juice, then cool completely, and chill for 4-6 hours. Churn it in an ice cream machine, then freeze
- For the olive oil gel, first infuse some extra virgin olive oil. Place some of the leftover peel from the blood oranges in a pan (saving ½ an orange’s worth for the attar) with the extra virgin olive oil and a sprig of thyme. Bring the temperature up to 60°C (or simply warm through). Allow to cool and infuse, then strain through a sieve, discarding the solids. Weigh out 55g and set aside
- Next, make a jelly. Soak the gelatine in cold water. Bring the water, isomalt, sugar and glucose syrup to the boil. Remove from the heat and whisk in the gelatine
- Use a handheld blender to slowly emulsify in the infused olive oil. Season lightly with salt, cool completely, then transfer to the fridge until fully set
- For the blood orange attar, combine all the ingredients in a small pan with the reserved peel from ½ a blood orange. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to cool and infuse
- For the labneh mousse, place the double cream, icing sugar and orange blossom water in a large bowl and lightly whip to soft peaks. Lightly fold through the labneh using a spatula – avoid overworking it as it can split. Transfer to a piping bag and chill in the fridge
- For the halewet el jibn dough, combine the water, semolina and sugar in a saucepan over a medium heat. Cook until it is thick and the semolina has fully cooked out, stirring constantly (it may catch a little)
- Add the mozzarella and fold through until the dough becomes elastic and stretchy
- Strain the attar, discarding the aromats. Lay a sheet of cling film on a surface and brush it lightly with syrup (set aside the rest for portioning later). On the cling film, roll the warm dough into a rectangle, about the thickness of a pound coin and about 10cm by 20cm in size
- Pipe a line of the cream the width of a £2 coin along one of the long edges, then use the cling film to roll it into a tube – make sure it is not too tight. Trim the excess dough as you roll it up. Fully chill it in the fridge
- For the honey tuile, mix together the flour, egg white, icing sugar and honey until smooth. Gradually add the butter to combine. Set aside to rest for 30 minutes
- Once the tuile mixture has rested, preheat the oven to 175°C. Spread the mixture into moulds (you may need to work in batches depending on how many moulds you have)
- Bake the tuiles for 3 minutes, then rotate the mould and bake for 1 final minute. Remove the tuiles from the mould when they’re still hot and set aside to cool
- For the almond and sumac crumble, preheat the oven to 175°C. Place the butter and sugar in a food processor and blitz together until combined. Add the flour, almonds and sumac and pulse until it forms crumbs. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until golden, turning occasionally. Set aside to cool
- Once the olive oil jelly is set, cut or break into pieces and blitz in a blender into a pipable gel. Transfer to a piping bag
- To portion the halewet el jibn, unroll it from the cling film and cut into 5cm lengths. Spoon over some more syrup
- To serve, pipe some olive oil gel onto the plate. Add the crumble and place the halawet el jibn on top. Arrange the blood orange segments around the edge. Place the tuile on top, then add a rocher of sorbet. Finish with toasted flaked almonds, micro lemon balm and a sprinkle of sumac
Rub together to combine Add the mixture to a small pan with the liquid glucose and water. Heat until the sugar is dissolved and the temperature reaches 85°C Cool the sorbet base until the temperature is below 25°C, then mix in the blood orange juice (reserving the peel).
Adjust the acidity if needed with more juice, then cool completely, and chill for 4-6 hours. Churn it in an ice cream machine, then freeze For the olive oil gel, first infuse some extra virgin olive oil.
Place some of the leftover peel from the blood oranges in a pan (saving ½ an orange’s worth for the attar) with the extra virgin olive oil and a sprig of thyme. Allow to cool and infuse, then strain through a sieve, discarding the solids. Remove from the heat and whisk in the gelatine Use a handheld blender to slowly emulsify in the infused olive oil.
Season lightly with salt, cool completely, then transfer to the fridge until fully set For the blood orange attar, combine all the ingredients in a small pan with the reserved peel from ½ a blood orange. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and allow to cool and infuse For the labneh mousse, place the double cream, icing sugar and orange blossom water in a large bowl and lightly whip to soft peaks. Transfer to a piping bag and chill in the fridge For the halewet el jibn dough, combine the water, semolina and sugar in a saucepan over a medium heat.
Cook until it is thick and the semolina has fully cooked out, stirring constantly (it may catch a little) Add the mozzarella. Fold through until the dough becomes elastic and stretchy Strain the attar, discarding the aromats. Lay a sheet of cling film on a surface and brush it lightly with syrup (set aside the rest for portioning later). On the cling film, roll the warm dough into a rectangle, about the thickness of a pound coin and about 10cm by 20cm in size Pipe a line of the cream the width of a £2 coin along one of the long edges, then use the cling film to roll it into a tube – make sure it is not too tight.
Fully chill it in the fridge For the honey tuile, mix together the flour, egg white, icing sugar and honey until smooth. Set aside to rest for 30 minutes Once the tuile mixture has rested, preheat the oven to 175°C. Spread the mixture into moulds (you may need to work in batches depending on how many moulds you have) Bake the tuiles for 3 minutes, then rotate the mould and bake for 1 final minute.
Remove the tuiles from the mould when they’re still hot and set aside to cool For the almond and sumac crumble, preheat the oven to 175°C. Place the butter and sugar in a food processor and blitz together until combined. Transfer to a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes, until golden, turning occasionally.
Set aside to cool Once the olive oil jelly is set, cut or break into pieces and blitz in a blender into a pipable gel. Transfer to a piping bag To portion the halewet el jibn, unroll it from the cling film and cut into 5cm lengths.