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Have you tried a Dubai-style chocolate bar? The candy has shot up in popularity over the past couple of years and for good reason. The oh-so-satisfying chocolate and pistachio confection manages to be creamy and crunchy at the same time.
One key ingredient of its success is its surprise ingredient that supplies the candy’s crunch: kataifi, which is shredded phyllo dough or, more accurately, noodle-like threads of spun phyllo batter.
It was the kataifi, an ingredient in many Middle Eastern pastries, that led me to the recipe for Chocolate Pistachio Shredded Phyllo Pastry. The dessert is rich, more than a little gooey and serves a crowd.
Purchased chocolate-nut spread creates the creamy, chocolate layer. You can find refrigerated or frozen kataifi in Middle Eastern, Indian or specialty food markets. It’s also online and in some supermarkets.
Chocolate Pistachio Shredded Phyllo Pastry
Makes 12-16 servings
- 2 cups of shelled raw or unsalted, roasted pistachio nuts, divided (see notes)
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1¼ cups sugar, divided
- 1 tsp. plus ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. plus ¼ tsp. ground cardamom
- 8 oz. (half of a 16-oz. package) kataifi at room temperature (see notes)
- ½ cup plus 1 Tbs. unsalted butter
- 26.5 oz jar chocolate-hazelnut or chocolate-almond spread
- ¾ cup water
- ¼ cup chocolate chips
- 1 tsp. vegetable oil
If using raw pistachio nuts, toast in hot, dry skillet until just golden. Let cool. (If you have unsalted, roasted nuts, do not toast them.) Combine with salt, ½ cup sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon and 1 tsp. cardamom in food processor. Chop until nuts are in pieces about ⅛-inch to ¼-inch in size.
Separate phyllo strands and cut into 1-inch pieces.
Heat oven to 350 F.
Melt all the butter. Brush 1 Tbs. melted butter on bottom and insides of an approximately 11-by-7-by-2-inch baking pan. Combine remaining melted butter and kataifi in large bowl. Mix well. Firmly press half of shreds into pan.
Spoon chocolate spread across strands. Use the side of a knife or an icing spatula to smooth, covering phyllo strands edge to edge.
Reserve ½ cup of pistachios for pastry top. Sprinkle remaining nuts evenly over chocolate. Firmly press remaining phyllo strands on top of pistachios. Cut pastry into 12 or 16 servings, cutting through to bottom of pan. Sprinkle reserved nuts on top.
Bake for 25-35 minutes until pastry is golden and has pulled away from edges of pan.
While pastry is baking, make sugar syrup. Put water, ¾ cup sugar, ¼ tsp. cinnamon, and ¼ tsp. cardamom in a small pot over medium heat. Stir until sugar is dissolved and mixture is just starting to boil. Adjust heat to simmer. Simmer without stirring for 10 minutes. Take off heat and have ready when pan comes out of oven.
Once pan is removed from oven, immediately spoon syrup evenly over top. Let cool 3-4 hours so syrup is absorbed before serving. Melt chocolate chips and oil together and drizzle over top of pastry. To serve, slice through premade cuts with knife and remove with spatula. Keep leftovers up to three days, well covered and at room temperature.
Notes: If only salted, roasted pistachio nuts are available, omit salt in recipe. If kataifi is frozen, defrost as directed on package. Rewrap and freeze remaining shredded phyllo for another use.