Kunafa With Mango And Cream (No-Bake)

Name: Kunafa With Mango And Cream (No-Bake)
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 3 cups Kunafa Pastry; 1/2 cup Ghee; 1/4 cup Honey; 300 g Cream cheese; 1/4 cup Icing Sugar; 1 tsp Vanilla extract; 1 cup Whipped cream; 2 Mango (, cut into small chunks); 1 tbsp Pistachios (, for topping)

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Do you know what’s better than a creamy cheesecake, or the very first harvest of juicy mangoes in May? This Kunafa With Mango and cream. This delicacy’s got your favorite sweet mangoes topped over buttery cream cheese and a layer of crispened Kunafa pastry.

Check also Kunafa with cream (Ashta) and Baklava Kataifi rolls.

Kunafa With Mango And Cream in cups in Cheesecake Cups

The pastry that seems crusty to the teeth, but melts away as soon as it’s tucked away in the mouth. Almost like a lover’s heart who rids his ego when confronted with words of affection from the one it desires most. As for those who are lonely, this Kunafa Cheesecake Cups with Mango is the cure to that crumbling hearts.

What is Kunafa With Mango And Cream?

It is a blend of three exotic luxuries, and an absolute dream come true for those with a sweet tooth. Kunafa is a Mediterranean pastry intricately made from shredded strands of phyllo dough known as Kataifi. This Kunafa pastry is traditionally soaked in a sugary-syrup before it’s topped or filled with pistachios, cheese, ashta (a creamy-milk) and other nuts.

The Kunafa Cheesecake Cups we’re preparing however, is far from the customary. Because after preparing the Kunafa pastry, this recipe involves mixing up the perfect creamy-cheese layer and slathering it right on top of it. Followed by some sappy mango cubes, what you would have made would be a rare delight.

Why this recipe?

These Kunafa cups are a heavenly combination of flavors. The kunafa’s love affair with the sweetness of the cream cheese and mangoes will feel like poetry to the tongue. While it’ll be difficult to resist dreaming about the taste of this dessert, there are actually ways it can benefit you beyond being an appetizing dessert. Make it for a loved one, and watch them go head over heels for you, treat your kids, or bribe your spouse for some extra favors with this jackpot of a recipe.

Recipe Ingredients

As you already know Kunafa Cheesecake Cups with Mango compromise of three beautiful layers placed on top of each other. The ingredients you’ll need for each layer are:

For the Kunafa (first layer from the bottom)
Kunafa Pastry: Find at any Arab store or order online
Ghee: Find at any Indian store or order online

For the Filling (Second layer)

Cream Cheese: Use your favourite one
Icing Sugar: Also known as powdered sugar or confectioners’ sugar
Vanilla extract: Or vanilla essence
Whipped Cream: Just what you have at home

Topping

Fresh mango: Cut into small chunks
Pistachios: Optional

a spoon full of Kunafa Cheesecake with Mango

How to Make Kunafa With Mango And Cream?

To make the Kunafa Cheesecake Cups, we’re going to prepare all the layers from the bottom up, and then assemble them all together.

Beginning with the first layer, we’ll put the Kunafa pastry into the food processor and pulse it for a few seconds until it is broken up into small pieces (don't turn it into powder).

Melt the ghee into a large skillet over medium heat, and add the pastry to the ghee in the skillet; stir.

Continue stirring the pastry consistently, until it is a beautiful golden brown color.

If you feel that you don’t have a skillet large enough to mix all your pastry, then you can do this step in small batches.

Finally, place this cooked pastry onto a bowl, pour the honey over it, stir and allow it to cool.

Now we’ll move on to preparing the second layer which is the filling:
In a mixing bowl, whisk the cream cheese, vanilla, and icing sugar together.

In another bowl, whip up the whipping cream till stiff peaks form.

Now, fold the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture, and put it in the fridge for a good 30 minutes.

Now that both our layers are ready, we’re going to assemble the entire dessert together and then finally top it with the third layer.

To start, put a layer of kunafa pastry into each cup, and top it with a cream cheese layer.

Add the start of the dish; the mango cubes. Now, add another layer of Kunafa and cream cheese and garnish with more mango cubes.

Traditionally, Kunafa and pistachios are quite inseparable, so sprinkle some of those on top if you please.

That’s it! Now your easy-no bake Kunafa Cheesecake Cups with Mango are awaiting your heartfelt presence.

Top Tips!

When picking mangoes, make sure the mango is ripe and sweet. A good way to check this is by giving the mangoes a gentle squeeze when purchasing. If it has a slight bounce, the mangoes are ripe. If it’s too squishy, they might be overripe or have gone bad. Ripe mangoes also give a sweet aroma from afar.

Recipe Variations

If you think you’ve got the skill, you can make this into a layered cake instead of several small cups. The recipe for it would be the same, you’ll just need to use a cake mould instead of cups. Don’t forget to line the molds with foil or parchment paper and leave it sticking out of the pan, so you can easily lift them out of the mould whilst serving.
Suppose, there is less availability of mangoes where you live, in which case the mangoes can be replaced for any succulent seasonal fruit of your choice. Maybe slice strawberries or blueberries.
You can even use a combination of fruits, and dry fruits. Think pistachios, hazelnuts, cashew nuts, blueberry, and raspberry compotes!

Serving Suggestions

A hot cup of tea or coffee is the perfect accompaniment to this dessert.

FAQ’s

What kind of cups should I use for this recipe?

You can use whatever style of cups you’d like. It totally depends on the presentation you’d like to create. You can use just about any wide glass cups you have laying around in your kitchen. Some people also use mason jars, with the lids removed. Just make sure you use a combination of cups and spoons that go well together. We don’t want our guests struggling to eat all three layers at once because they just can’t get their spoon into the glass.

Are Kunafa Cheesecake Cups served hot or cold?

These Kunafa Cheesecake Cups with Mango can be served at room temperature, right about when they are finished being assembled. However, according to us, they taste best when refrigerated for a couple of hours. This also helps the layers become more settled in the cups. If you’re making a cake from this recipe, as suggested in the recipe variations segment of the blog, then you’ll probably want to refrigerate for a longer time, so the cake holds its shape.

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