Ekmek Kataifi

Remove the kataifi pastry from the freezer and let it defrost completely according to the package instructions.

In a pot, boil the water, sugar, lemon rind (not the white part) and the cinnamon stick. Move the pot and place it over a low heat. Let it boil for 3-4 minutes until the sugar dissolves. As soon as it starts to boil, add the honey. Remove from the heat, mix and set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 160°C with the fan on. Tear apart the kataifi shreds with your fingers and make sure there are no knots. Butter a 25×35cm oven tray and spread out 1/3 of the kataifi pastry. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the butter. Repeat the process another 2 times until you use up all the kataifi pastry and butter. Use a brush to press only the edges of the kataifi. Bake for 1 hour. After thirty minutes, turn the kataifi around so that both sides can turn golden brown. Remove from the oven and use a ladle to pour the cold syrup over. Set aside for 30 minutes until it absorbs all the syrup.

Put 900g milk, 100g sugar and the vanilla extract in a pot. Place the pot over medium to low heat so that the milk does not burn. Put 100g of sugar and the egg yolks in a bowl. Whisk the mixture until the yolks break and then add the 100g of milk. Mix until the sugar dissolves. Add the cornflour and mix the ingredients until you have a homogeneous mixture. As soon as the mixture in the pot comes to a boil, remove the pot from the heat

Use a ladle to take some of the mixture from the pot and add it gradually to the egg mixture while stirring continuously. Then put all the milk from the pot in the egg mixture. Place the same pot over medium to low heat and pour all the mixture from the bowl into it. Mix until it becomes thick. Turn off the heat and taste. One should not taste the cornflour at all. Add the cold butter and whisk until it melts.

Pour the cream over the kataifi and spread it out with a spatula until the entire surface is covered. Cover with cling film and place in the fridge for 3 to 4 hours. Make sure the cling film touches the cream so that a crust doesn’t form.

In the mixer bowl, pour in the cold heavy cream, the vanilla extract and the icing sugar, and mix at high speed until it becomes a whipped cream and has the consistency of a yoghurt.

Remove the kataifi from the fridge and spread the whipped cream with a spatula. Form lines on the surface of the whipped cream using the back part of a fork. Sprinkle with the pistachios and serve. It can also be served with fruit of your choice.