The Middle East has a reputation for wafer-thin layered pastries drenched in sticky, fragrant syrups and filled with nuts and it’s easy to see why. But the region also has other sweet delights to offer. Take milk pudding with labne, apricot and Turkish fairy floss, for example, or fig ataif with orange blossom syrup or pistachio doughnuts with rosewater glaze, all of which feature in this collection of modern Middle Eastern desserts that goes well beyond baklava.
Chocolate mousse tart with pomegranates and pine nuts
Semolina custard in kataifi with wild figs and Turkish apricots
Date puddings with sesame ice-cream and salted caramel
Middle Eastern fruit cakes with orange-blossom meringue
Watermelon with rosewater, labne, mint and pomegranate molasses
Milk pudding with labne, apricot and Turkish fairy floss
