Egypt's answer to bread pudding: flaky puff pastry soaked in sweetened milk, studded with pistachios, almonds, coconut, and raisins, then baked until a golden crust forms over the creamy custard beneath. This warming dessert is pure Egyptian comfort.
Ingredients
400g puff pastry sheets
1L whole milk
200ml heavy cream
150g sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
50g pistachios, roughly chopped
50g almonds, roughly chopped
50g pine nuts
40g shredded coconut
50g golden raisins
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cardamom
Instructions
1Preheat oven to 200C (400F). Bake the puff pastry sheets on a lined tray for 12-15 minutes until puffed and deeply golden. Let cool, then crumble into rough pieces.
2In a saucepan, heat the milk, cream, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and cardamom over medium heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Bring just to a simmer but do not boil.
3Scatter the crumbled pastry into a large baking dish. Sprinkle the pistachios, almonds, pine nuts, coconut, and raisins evenly over the pastry.
4Pour the hot sweetened milk mixture over everything, ensuring all the pastry pieces are soaked. Press down gently so the pastry absorbs the liquid.
5Bake at 200C for 15-20 minutes until the top is deeply golden and caramelized, with bubbling edges. The center should be custardy and the top crisp.
6Let cool for 5 minutes before serving warm. Om Ali is best eaten the moment it emerges from the oven, when the contrast between crispy top and creamy interior is at its peak.
Did You Know?
Om Ali literally means 'Ali's mother' and legend traces it to a 13th-century queen who celebrated her rival's defeat by ordering the palace cooks to create the most decadent dessert in all of Egypt to share with the people.