Warbat Bil Ashta
It just might be our favorite delicious Arab sweet! And easy to make!
I didn’t know what it was called….just knew that it looked like a turnover but was much flakier and buttery with a warm creamy center and was the first thing I looked for on the dessert buffet tables at Jordanian dinner parties, or in the pastry shops of the West Bank. Like baklawa, it is made with layers of phyllo pastry and drizzled with the warm simple syrup that is served with Arab desserts, and quickly became my favorite Jordanian sweet.
On more than one occasion, I asked the waiters or bakers for the name but the word was indecipherable garbled syllables and meant nothing to me, therefore, impossible to memorize. At one point, I asked one of them to write it down for me who was able to do so in English characters and the closest I could come to the name was Warbat, heavy on the rolling “r” sound.
Over the years since, I remembered the name but never met anyone that made it or had even heard of it and I assumed I could only experience that culinary wonder taste on our infrequent visits to Jordan. But then during a recent memory of that divine sweet, I remembered the internet…..and that one can find anything on the internet….and that even an obscure Jordanian sweet might have another devotee who wanted to share that recipe with the world via modern technology.
Typing furiously, I experimented with different spellings and “Il hum dil li lah!” the entry, Warbat recipe, popped up before my eyes, not once but 2 or 3 times on my screen. Oh, my heart…..could I really experience and share that pastry of the sublime with myself and others again? The answer was yes! In fact the first time I made it was for a recent cooking class because as I read through the recipe, I discovered that it was simply phyllo pastry brushed with butter which has been in my wheelhouse for years…the syrup as well….and the Ashta cream I had made on different occasions - so I ventured forth with excellent results.
I took the liberty of making a few changes as in the amounts of Ashta cream used and I tweaked here and there with additions I knew could improve it for the Western palette - a squirt of lemon juice here, a bit less cream there, no rose water. Now here it is for you! A very accessible rendition of the dessert I searched so long for. And you don’t even have to wonder about the name - you have my permission to just call it Warbat!
warbat bil ashta/shaabiyat
(Middle Eastern Cream Stuffed Pastries)
30 phyllo sheets, thawed and kept covere
2 1/2 sticks of butter, melted
1/2 cup ground pistachios, for garnish
ASHTA/ CREAM FILLING:
2 cups whole milk
1 cups heavy whipping crea
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 tablespoon orange blossom water/or vanilla extract if preferred
dash of salt
SUGAR SYRUP:
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
½ teaspoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons orange blossom
water, optional
Prepare Ashta/Cream FIlling:
-In a large saucepan that doesn’t scorch, whisk together all of the ingredients. Bring to a boil over medium heat, while stirring constantly, until thickened, about 10 to 15 minutes.
-Remove from heat and transfer to a heat-proof dish and cover with plastic wrap (this will prevent a skin from forming). Cool completely.
Prepare Sugar Syrup:
-In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, water, and lemon juice. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling, reduce the heat to a simmer (medium-low) and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and add the orange blossom water (if desired). Set aside to cool.
Assemble:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F and set aside a greased baking sheet.
2. On a clean surface, gently lay flat one sheet of phyllo. Brush with melted butter, and place another sheet directly on top. Continue this process until 10 of the phyllo sheets are used, ending with the final sheet brushed with butter.
3. Gently cut the stack of phyllo dough into squares, about 3 to 4-inches in size.
4. Place a heaped tablespoon of the cooled ashta/cream filling at the center of each square. Gently fold the corners over to form a triangle.
5. Transfer each triangle pastry to the prepared baking sheet. Traditionally the pastries are placed in blocks of 4 so that the folded parts of the pastry form the outsides of a square, and the open corners of the triangles meet in the center. However, you can place them on the pan as you please. Brush the tops with butter.
6. Bake until golden brown and crisp, about 30 minutes.
7. Remove from the oven and allow them to sit for 5 minutes. Gently pour 1-cup of the prepared sugar syrup over the baked pastries then allow the pastries to cool completely and soak up the syrup. Garnish with ground pistachios. A small pink or red rose petal is often placed on top of each one as an accent.
8. Continue the above process to make 2 more batches of Warbat, using 10 sheets of phyllo for each batch.
Makes 18 Warbat triangles.
Lay one sheet at a time on the counter and brush with melted butter.
Continue brushing each sheet until all 10 have been used.
Cut the dough into 6, 4 inch squares.
Place a spoonful of cream filling in the center of each square.
Fold pastry over cream, press edges and place in baking dish.
Pour syrup over triangles and let cool at least an hour.
A sweet cream center encased with buttery, flaky layers of pastry.
PERSNICKETY NOTES:
*If you have never used phyllo/fillo/filo pastry before, check my notes under my blog entitled “Baklawa”. Don’t let phyllo intimidate you - once you get the hang of working with it, it’s really fun and gratifying! You will find phyllo pastry in the frozen foods section of your grocery store near the frozen pie crusts. Allow to thaw completely before using.
*Avoid over stuffing the pastries with ashta/cream filling. A little may run out as you are not able to pinch the edges of the triangles together as you are able to do with some pastry. Just press as well as you can and it is not a problem if some of the filling leaks.
*You are likely to have leftover Ashta cream from this recipe. If you would like to save it, simply place 1/3 cup in a pudding or dessert cup, sprinkle with ground pistachios on top and serve with a drizzle of the sugar syrup over the top.
*About 2 cups of the sugar syrup is plenty for this recipe of Warbat. Pour about 1 1/4 cup over the warm pastries, which they will soak up as they cool and then serve the remaining 3/4 cup syrup for people to add to their serving as desired.
*We prefer the Warbat served warm, so if you make it ahead of time, just place it in a warm oven for about 5 minutes before serving with the warm syrup.
*Warbat bil Ashta can be kept at room temperature in a container covered loosely with foil, or refrigerated. Do not cover tightly or seal with a plastic lid, as you will lose the crispness of the filo pastry.
*Orange Blossom water can be purchased at Middle Eastern or International groceries and gives the Warbat a very authentic flavor, much more subtle than that of Rose Water, which some people use.
