Khaliat al-nahl

Ingredients

Dough

• 500 gplain flour
• 7 ginstant yeast
• 50 gcaster sugar
• 1 tspsalt
• 250 mlwarm milk
• 1egg
• 60 gbutter, melted
• 2 tbspmilk powder, if wanted

Filling

• 300 gcream cheese, cold
• or 300 g akkawi cheese, desalted and cubed

Syrup

• 300 gcaster sugar
• 150 mlwater
• 1 tsplemon juice
• 2 tbsphoney
• 1 tbsporange blossom water

To finish

• 1egg yolk beaten with 1 tbsp milk
• 2 tbspnigella seeds, or sesame seeds

Equipment

• a round baking dish about 26 cm across

Directions

1. Put the sugar, water and lemon juice in a pan over a medium heat. Stir it only until the sugar dissolves, then leave it alone. Simmer it for eight minutes until it thickens very slightly. Take it off the heat and stir in the honey and orange blossom water. Let it cool completely while everything else is made. Cold syrup on hot bread is what soaks in without turning it soggy.
2. Warm the milk to blood temperature and no hotter. Put the flour, yeast, sugar, salt and milk powder in a large bowl. Whisk them together so the yeast is well distributed. Add the warm milk, the egg and the melted butter. Mix it into a soft dough and turn it out onto the surface.
3. Knead it for ten minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky rather than firm. Put it in an oiled bowl, cover it, and leave it to rise. Let it double in size, which takes about an hour. Now the filling, which must be cold and firm.
4. Cut the cold cream cheese into twenty-four small cubes. Put them on a plate and return them to the fridge. Warm cheese spreads and leaks out during baking. If using akkawi, soak it in cold water for four hours first.
5. Roll each piece into a ball and keep them covered. Take one ball and flatten it into a disc in your palm. Put a cube of cold cheese in the centre. Bring the edges up around the cheese and pinch them together. Pinch hard, since a weak seal will burst in the oven. Roll it between your palms so the seam disappears.
6. Set it seam side down in the greased baking dish. Place one ball in the centre of the dish. Arrange the rest in rings around it, touching one another. They must touch, since the pattern comes from them baking together.
7. Fill the dish snugly rather than leaving gaps. Cover the dish loosely and leave it for thirty minutes. Heat the oven to 180C while they prove. Brush the tops with the egg yolk and milk glaze. Scatter the nigella or sesame seeds over the surface.
8. Bake it for twenty-five to thirty minutes. It should be deep golden on top and cooked through in the middle. Cover it loosely with foil if it colours too fast. Take the dish out and pour the cold syrup over the hot bread.
9. Pour it slowly so it runs down between the balls. Use all of it, since much of it soaks in. Let it stand for fifteen minutes so the syrup is absorbed. Now serving, which is done by pulling it apart. Serve it warm, straight from the dish. The cheese should still be soft and stretchy inside. Serve it with tea or Arabic coffee. It is best on the day it is made and goes dry by the next.

Technique

• Use cold firm cheese, since warm cheese leaks out during baking.
• Pinch the seams hard, or the balls burst in the oven.
• Pour cold syrup over hot bread so it soaks in without going soggy.

Substitutions

• Akkawi cheese, soaked for four hours to remove the salt.
• Sesame seeds in place of nigella.

Variations

• Filled with date paste instead of cheese.
• Filled with chocolate spread, now common for children.
• Savoury, with the syrup left off and cheese and herbs inside.

History

Named for its beehive shape; a Hejazi and Yemeni bakery sweet now common across the Gulf.

Frequently asked questions

What is Khaliat al-nahl?

Khaliat al-nahl is a bread & pastry from Saudi Arabia: honeycomb of dough balls stuffed with cream cheese and glazed with syrup. Named for its beehive shape; a Hejazi and Yemeni bakery sweet now common across the Gulf.

How long does Khaliat al-nahl take to make?

Khaliat al-nahl takes 40 min plus 90 min rising of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 24 balls. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Khaliat al-nahl?

Yes, within limits. Akkawi cheese, soaked for four hours to remove the salt. Sesame seeds in place of nigella.

What is the most important thing to get right in Khaliat al-nahl?

Knead it for ten minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough should be soft and slightly tacky rather than firm. Put it in an oiled bowl, cover it, and leave it to rise. Let it double in size, which takes about an hour. Now the filling, which must be cold and firm.