My get pushed challenge from Kathy @randystreat is food photography. When I planned to make the spanakopita, Frank came back from the grocery shopping and told me that he could find no phyllo dough, nor puff pastry dough (which I often use as a lazy cheat). He'd checked two stores, the Dillons/Kroger on the eastside, and the Hy Vee nearby. I asked about the Dillons on the westside of town, but he said the eastside store told him they hadn't had it in quite a while--implication for him being it wasn't available from their supplier.
The next day, on the way home from getting bagels from Panera (our lives the last few days seem to have revolved around food--shopping, eating, shopping some more!) I stopped at the Asian Market and asked if they had phyllo dough. The young man brought me to a case with a number of products in it. I didn't see the usual phylo dough I'm used to, but there was a package of kataifi shredded dough that looked like it was what he was pointing me to. I could see it was different, but thought maybe it would serve, so I bought that and brought it home.
I can't remember what I was out and about for the next day after that, but stopped at the westside Dillons for something and checked the frozen section just in case they had the phyllo dough. Eureka! They had that and the puff pastry dough, so I bought both. Since I had the kataifi dough in the fridge and thawed, I looked up a recipe to use it in and came up with kanafe. The kataifi dough is shredded phyllo dough, but it's shredded so fine it's like shredded wheat cereal. Per instructions, I chopped it up, worked some melted butter into it, pressed half of it on the bottom of the pan followed by a mixture of ricotta and mozzarella cheese, and more of the kataifi dough piled on top. After baking, pour a sugar syrup according to recipe (well, almost to recipe) over it to soak in. It was the pistachio nuts I was missing the other day when I posted the spanakopita pic. The orange slices are just for show.
I wish I could have a bunch of you over for dessert. It's just Frank and me, and so far we've only managed to eat the smaller pan of ingredients that wouldn't fit in this one. Didn't have the pistachios yet, but it was a good sample.
@randystreat Here's the other thing for the challenge. Dang, I wish I could bring some over to you. but the driving time and gas wouldn't be cost effective. Have to be to work tomorrow and it's cold and snow on the ground right now.
Not sure how I missed this, but it's quite a festive and elegant presentation of this dish. I think I remember eating desserts with the shredded wheat type stuff. (Non-foodie that I am, I figured they made it with shredded wheat, but it was good and I like shredded wheat.)
You have set it up so perfectly making the dish the star of the shot.
Looks absolutely delicious!