Halawet el jibn

Step 1: Make the syrup: boil 10 ½ oz sugar, ¾ cup water and 1 tsp lemon juice over a medium-high heat for 8 minutes, until slightly thickened, like thin honey. Stir in 1 tbsp rose water and leave to cool completely.

Step 2: For the ashta, whisk 1 ¼ oz cornflour into 100 ml of the ½ cup whole milk until smooth. Heat the rest of 1 cup whole milk, ¾ cup double cream and 1 tbsp sugar over a medium heat until steaming, then whisk in the cornflour mixture.

Step 3: Stir constantly over a medium-low heat for 6–8 minutes, until very thick and the whisk leaves deep trails. Stir in 1 tbsp orange-blossom water, press cling film onto the surface and chill for at least 1 hour, until firm enough to pipe.

Step 4: If using akkawi, soak the slices in cold water for 2–3 hours, changing the water often, until it tastes only faintly salty; then grate. Mozzarella needs no soaking. Not desalting akkawi is the common mistake: the dessert turns salty.

Step 5: Put 5 ½ oz fine semolina, 1 ¾ oz sugar and ½ cup water in a non-stick pan over a medium heat and stir for 2–3 minutes until it forms a thick paste.

Step 6: Add 14 oz low-moisture mozzarella or desalted akkawi and 1 tbsp rose water and keep stirring and folding over a medium-low heat for 5–6 minutes, until the cheese melts completely and the dough is smooth, glossy, stretchy and pulls away from the pan.

Step 7: Tip the hot dough onto a well-oiled sheet of baking paper, put a second oiled sheet on top and roll quickly into a rectangle about 3 mm thick, roughly 35 × 30 cm. Work fast; it stiffens as it cools.

Step 8: Peel off the top paper and cut the sheet into two long strips. Pipe a thick line of ashta along one long edge of each strip and roll up tightly, leaving the seam underneath.

Step 9: Cut each roll into 4–5 cm pieces with an oiled knife. Arrange on a serving plate, pour over a few spoonfuls of the cold syrup, and sprinkle with 1 ⅜ oz pistachios and 1 tbsp dried rose petals. Serve the same day with more syrup at the table.