Umm Ali

Umm Ali = (Ali’s Mother)

I got this Arab version of bread pudding from my mother. Rose water can be found in specialty stores and in some grocery stores in the ethnic food aisle. It’s added to desserts throughout the Middle-East. Rose water drops in regular water is offered to guests to drink and to sprinkle on their faces to refresh themselves.

1 package puff pasty sheets, baked according to directions on package.

3/4 cup chopped pistachios

2 T lemon juice

1 cup milk

¾ c sugar

Cinnamon to taste

1 beaten egg

2 tsp. rose water

1 c light cream

More cream to serve.

Grease baking dish. Crumble pastry into dish. Sprinkle with nuts and lemon juice. Heat milk, sugar, cinnamon, in a saucepan to a simmer (don’t boil). Stirring continuously, slowly add egg. Pour egg/milk mix over the pastry. Sprinkle with rose water. Pour 1 cup cream over the top and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Serve warm with additional cream poured over the top. It’s also good with raisins, walnuts, pine nuts, and/or a finely chopped apple instead of, or in addition to, the pistachios.

At a Saudi wedding, I, my mother, and siblings were separated from my father, of course, who was sitting with the men. We tried to get by on our pidgin Arabic. The dinner was brought in: a whole sheep laid across a platter of rice, skull grinning at us. The sheep’s belly had been stuffed with spaghetti which now squished out like guts. I was offered a piece of meat and—too late—realized I had been honored with a chunk of the liver. Grabbing a glass of water to wash it down, I discovered—too late—that it was a glass of almost pure rose water, to honor the guests and show off the family’s wealth. It was like drinking your grandmother's perfume. Moral of the story: Use rose water sparingly.