Znoud el Sit — Print Recipe — The Culinary Codex

Crispy phyllo rolls filled with sweet ashta cream, deep-fried until golden, and soaked in fragrant orange blossom syrup. These indulgent Iraqi pastries are impossibly crunchy and creamy at once.

Ingredients

12 sheets phyllo dough
For ashta cream: 2 cups milk
3 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp orange blossom water
1 tbsp rose water
For syrup: 2 cups sugar
1 cup water
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp orange blossom water
Vegetable oil for frying
Crushed pistachios for garnish

Instructions

1 Make ashta cream: mix cornstarch with cold milk, heat while stirring until thickened. Add sugar, orange blossom and rose water. Cool completely.
2 Make syrup: boil sugar, water, and lemon juice for 8 minutes. Add orange blossom water. Cool.
3 Cut phyllo sheets in half. Place 2 tablespoons of cooled ashta cream along one short edge of each piece.
4 Roll up tightly, tucking in the sides like a spring roll. Seal the edge with a dab of water.
5 Deep fry the rolls at 175C for 3-4 minutes, turning once, until evenly golden and crispy.
6 Immediately dip hot rolls in cold syrup for 10 seconds. Garnish with crushed pistachios and serve.

Did You Know?

The playful name "lady's upper arms" refers to the plump, rounded shape of the pastry rolls, a testament to Iraqi humor in the kitchen.