Ingredients
Pudding
- 500ml of milk (cow or coconut)
- 100g sugar
- 125 ml cream (omit if using coconut milk and make up with more full-fat coconut milk)
- 4 tbsp cornflour
- 1 tbsp rosewater
- Raspberry sauce:
- 120g frozen raspberries
- 20g sugar
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1tbsp cornflour
- 100ml cold water
- Fresh raspberries & chopped pistachios to serve
Medjoul dates with rosewater cashew cream
- 100g cashew nuts, soaked in water for 2 hours
- 1 tbsp date molasses (also known as date syrup)
- 30g tahini
- ¼ tsp rose water
- 1 tsp orange zest
- ½ tsp sea salt
- Medjoul dates (as many as you want to fill)
- Rose petals to garnish
Beetroot & rosewater salad
- 40 ml extra virgin rapeseed oil
- 30 ml red wine vinegar
- ½ tbsp rosewater
- 1 tbsp date syrup
- salt & pepper
- 6 medium cooked beetroot, chopped into bite size cubes
- 200g baby spinach leaves, washed
- Toonsbridge Greek style cheese or feta cheese
- za’atar for garnish
Rosewater Recipes
Roses seem to be the traditional flower for Valentine’s; they are such a beautiful flower but as I’m all about the food – I prefer to eat them! Using rosewater and rose petals was something very new for me (other than a Turkish delight bar as a child) when I started cooking Middle Eastern food. I love the flavour it brings to both sweet and savoury food. Check out our favourite rosewater recipes below.
This pudding (pictured) is usually sold in small stalls along the roadside in Israel. It reminds me of the summer and visits to the beach. It’s simple to prepare as long as you keep stirring the cornflour pudding base on a gentle heat and can be made the day before serving. This makes approx. five puddings.
Ingredients
Pudding
- 500ml of milk (cow or coconut)
- 100g sugar
- 125 ml cream (omit if using coconut milk and make up with more full-fat coconut milk)
- 4 tbsp cornflour
- 1 tbsp rosewater
- Raspberry sauce:
- 120g frozen raspberries
- 20g sugar
- 1 tbsp orange juice
- 1tbsp cornflour
- 100ml cold water
- Fresh raspberries & chopped pistachios to serve
Medjoul dates with rosewater cashew cream
- 100g cashew nuts, soaked in water for 2 hours
- 1 tbsp date molasses (also known as date syrup)
- 30g tahini
- ¼ tsp rose water
- 1 tsp orange zest
- ½ tsp sea salt
- Medjoul dates (as many as you want to fill)
- Rose petals to garnish
Beetroot & rosewater salad
- 40 ml extra virgin rapeseed oil
- 30 ml red wine vinegar
- ½ tbsp rosewater
- 1 tbsp date syrup
- salt & pepper
- 6 medium cooked beetroot, chopped into bite size cubes
- 200g baby spinach leaves, washed
- Toonsbridge Greek style cheese or feta cheese
- za’atar for garnish
Method
Pudding
- Dissolve the cornflour in about ¼ of a litre of milk.
- Warm remaining milk and cream with the sugar and rosewater. Once warm but before it boils add the cornflour mixture.
- Stirring continuously on a low to medium heat until it becomes a thick sauce and it coats the back of a spoon.
- Pour into serving jars, cups or heatproof glasses. Allow to cool, cover & refrigerate.
To make the raspberry sauce:
- Combine the raspberries, sugar and orange juice in a saucepan.
- Whisk the cornflour into the cold water until smooth. Add the mixture to the saucepan and bring to the boil.
- Simmer for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the desired consistency is reached. The sauce will thicken further as it cools.
- Strain the sauce through a fine sieve, allow to cool and then refrigerate.
To serve:
Pour enough raspberry sauce to cover the pudding base in the glass (approx 3 mm). Top with a fresh raspberry & chopped pistachios.
Medjoul dates with rosewater cashew cream method
- Drain the cashews and whizz in a food processor with date molasses, tahini and rosewater. Stir in orange zest and sea salt.
- Cut the date lengthways on the top to open and remove the stone. Fill the date pocket with the cashew cream.
Keep refrigerated and garnish with rose petals before serving.
Beetroot & rosewater salad method
- Whisk the dressing ingredients together and mix with the chopped beetroot. You can prepare this in advance and store in a sealed container in the fridge (it’ll keep for a few days). Taste and adjust oil/vinegar or seasoning.
- When ready to serve, using a wide and shallow bowl, spread out the spinach, spoon on the beetroot and dressing, crumble over the cheese and sprinkle the za’atar on top.
