Kunafah Apple Pie
A sweet, buttery, cinnamon apple pie filling fused with the incredible textures of buttery Egyptian kunafah.
Ingredients
For the Kunafah Crust
- 1 Package of Shredded Phyllo Dough, Kataifi
- 1 c unsalted butter, melted (8 oz or 2 sticks)
For the apple filling
- 5-6 apples, peeled, and chopped
- 2 sticks butter
- 1/2 c flour
- 2 c brown sugar
- 1 1/4 c white sugar
- 3 tbsp cinnamon
- 1/2 c water
- 1 c chopped pecans and walnuts
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
For the Kunafah crust
- Remove the kataifi dough from the freezer and allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight, or on the counter for a few hours. The dough must be thawed and at room temperature before using.
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees (f).
- Separate and loosen the kataifi dough strands in a large bowl. Be sure to cut the long strands of dough with kitchen shears a few times so they aren't too long. Pour 1 cup of the melted butter all over the kataifi dough and rub it gently until all the strands of dough are well coated in the butter, otherwise it will be dry and have no flavor.
- Using half of the dough, press it into a pie pan, pressing up the sides of the pan.
For the filling
- Mound the chopped apples and 1/2 cup of nuts into the center of the pie pan, on top of the kunafah crust.
- Melt the butter in a small pot over medium heat.
- Slowly stir in the flour to create a golden paste, making sure to smooth out any lumps with a spoon.
- Add the brown sugar and 1 cup of the white sugar, 1/2 c of water, and cinnamon and stir well.
- Allow the sauce to simmer on low for 3-5 minutes.
Assembly of the Kunafah
- Slowly pour half of the sauce all over the apples and nuts, reserving the other half of it to drizzle on top of the kunafah at the end.
- Using the remainder of the kunafah dough, layer it on top of the apples to cover them completely, making sure to close up the edges of the dough by pressing it together. The dough will be very stringy and parts may stick up. Press them down as best as you can.
- Bake on the lower middle rack of the oven for 30 minutes. (The top of kunafa browns quickly).
- Replace the pot of remaining caramel sauce on the stove at low heat. Add 1/2 cup of water and 1/4 c of white sugar into the remainder of the sauce. Stir it until well incorporated and allow to simmer for 3-5 minutes until the sugar has dissolved. Add the lemon juice.
- Stir the remainder of the nuts into the caramel sauce.
- After removing the kunafah from the oven, promptly pour the sauce all over the kunafah top.
- Serve warm and enjoy with ice cream, coffee, or tea!
Notes
If you are baking the kunafa in advance of serving, reserve the caramel sauce on top for pouring right before serving. When ready to serve, simply reheat the kunafa in an oven warmed to 250 degrees for 15-20 minutes. After removing from the oven, pour the sauce with nuts all over the top and serve.