To Aleppo With Love – Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan
February 28th, 2017
Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan (Padded Rice Pudding) is a beautiful Aleppine layered pudding. The bottom part is Aruz Bel-Halib (rice pudding) and it is topped with orange pudding.
Let’s make Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan:
Rice Pudding
1, 2. Put 170 g Egyptian short grain rice in a bowl.
3, 4. Add boiling water to rice.
5, 6, 7. Stir and set aside to soak for 15 minutes.
8. After 15 minutes, drain water from rice.
9, 10, 11. Wash and rinse rice in three changes of water.
12. Drain water from rice and set aside.
13, 14, 15, 16. Put 2000 ml full fat milk in a large pot.
13, 14, 15, 16. Turn on heat, and keep over high heat with continuous stirring using a wooden spoon until it starts to boil.
u
17, 18, 19, 20. Allow the milk to boil for 5 minutes, then add rice to milk and keep over high heat with continuous stirring until it starts to boil.
21. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat with continuous stirring for 30 minutes or until milk slightly thickened because of starch released from the rice.
22, 23, 24. After 30 minutes, add 170 g sugar to milk mixture and stir to dissolve.
25, 26, 27, 28, 29. Measure 1 gram mastic tears and put them on a plastic paper, then add 1/4 teaspoon powdered sugar to them.
30, 31, 32. Use a pestle and crush mastic tears with powdered sugar between sheets of a plastic paper.
33, 34, 35, 36. Add crushed mastic mixture to the milk, and keep over medium heat for 10 minutes with continuous stirring.
37. Taste the rice. The texture should be tender but not mushy, at this point rice pudding is done. The total time of making rice pudding from (step 13 to step 37) was 60 minutes.
38, 39, 40. Turn off heat, add 2 tablespoons orange blossom water and stir.
41 to 51. Serve hot rice pudding in ice cream bowls or small bowls, fill the bowl to 3/4 of its capacity.
52. Set aside at room temperature to cool, then put in the refrigerator uncovered for 24 hours.
Orange Pudding
53, 54, 55, 56. After 24 hours, pour 1000 ml fresh orange juice to a large pot.
57 to 64. Add 35 g cornflour (cornstarch) to orange juice, and whisk immediately until dissolved.
65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70. Add 125 g sugar to orange juice, and whisk immediately until dissolved.
71, 72. Turn on heat, and keep over high heat with continuous stirring using a whisk until it starts to boil.
73, 74, 75, 76. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat with continuous stirring using a wooden spoon for 15 minutes or until orange juice slightly thickened.
77 to 91. Bring cold rice pudding and gently pour orange pudding over the rice pudding.
92. Set aside at room temperature to cool completely, then put in the refrigerator uncovered for 24 hours.
Candied Orange Peel
93 to 100. Using a small sharp knife, cut the peel off the oranges in long strips. Cut off any white pith on the peel then cut the peel into thin strips.
101, 102, 103, 104. Combine 125 g sugar and 125 ml water in a saucepan over high heat until the sugar dissolved, allow to boil for 5 minutes.
105, 106, 107, 108, 109, 110. Add the orange peel and cook until the peel is tender and the syrup thickens, about 10 minutes.
111, 112, 113, 114. Place a strainer over a jug, transfer the peel and the syrup to the strainer and drain.
115, 116. Use the drained candied orange peel for garnish. It can be sugared, toss the orange peel with sugar to coat.
117 to 124. When the pudding completely cooled, garnish with crushed pistachio and candied orange peel.
125. Serve Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan cold.
Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan
From: Chef Mohammad Orfali / Servings: 7 ice cream bowls (capacity of bowl = 300 ml) and 6 small bowls (capacity of bowl = 150 ml)
PDF Text Only / Print With Images
| Rice Pudding 170 g Egyptian short grain rice 2000 ml full fat milk 170 g sugar 1 g mastic tears 1/4 tsp powdered sugar 2 tbsp orange blossom water Orange Pudding 1000 ml fresh orange juice 35 g cornflour (cornstarch) 125 g sugar Garnish Candied orange peel Crushed pistachio Candied Orange Peel 2 navel or valencia oranges 125 g sugar 125 ml water |
Rice Pudding Put 170 g Egyptian short grain rice in a bowl. Add boiling water to rice. Stir and set aside to soak for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, drain water from rice. Wash and rinse rice in three changes of water. Drain water from rice and set aside. Put 2000 ml full fat milk in a large pot. Turn on heat, and keep over high heat with continuous stirring using a wooden spoon until it starts to boil. Allow the milk to boil for 5 minutes, then add rice to milk and keep over high heat with continuous stirring until it starts to boil. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat with continuous stirring for 30 minutes or until milk slightly thickened because of starch released from the rice. After 30 minutes, add 170 g sugar to milk mixture and stir to dissolve. Measure 1 gram mastic tears and put them on a plastic paper, then add 1/4 teaspoon powdered sugar to them. Use a pestle and crush mastic tears with powdered sugar between sheets of a plastic paper. Add crushed mastic mixture to the milk, and keep over medium heat for 10 minutes with continuous stirring. Taste the rice. The texture should be tender but not mushy, at this point rice pudding is done. The total time of making rice pudding from (step 13 to step 37) was 60 minutes. Turn off heat, add 2 tablespoons orange blossom water and stir. Serve hot rice pudding in ice cream bowls or small bowls, fill the bowl to 3/4 of its capacity. Orange Pudding After 24 hours, pour 1000 ml fresh orange juice to a large pot. Add 35 g cornflour (cornstarch) to orange juice, and whisk immediately until dissolved. Add 125 g sugar to orange juice, and whisk immediately until dissolved. Turn on heat, and keep over high heat with continuous stirring using a whisk until it starts to boil. Reduce heat and cook over medium heat with continuous stirring using a wooden spoon for 15 minutes or until orange juice slightly thickened. Bring cold rice pudding and gently pour orange pudding over the rice pudding. Set aside at room temperature to cool completely, then put in the refrigerator uncovered for 24 hours. Candied Orange Peel Using a small sharp knife, cut the peel off the oranges in long strips. Cut off any white pith on the peel then cut the peel into thin strips. Combine 125 g sugar and 125 ml water in a saucepan over hight heat until the sugar dissolves, allow to boil for 5 minutes. Add the orange peel and cook until the peel is tender and the syrup thickens, about 10 minutes. Place a strainer over a jug, transfer the peel and the syrup to the strainer and drain. Use the drained candied orange peel for garnish. It can be sugared, toss the orange peel with sugar to coat. When the pudding completely cooled, garnish with crushed pistachio and candied orange peel. Serve Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan cold. |
Notes and Tips
Read about Mastic here.
Crush the mastic with powdered sugar before start making the rice pudding.
My grandmother adds Geranium Leaves to Aruz Bel-Halib (Rice Pudding) and it gives a very nice flavor, the leaves are removed before serving in bowls, geranium is known in Arabic as (‘Aterah عطرة). In my old post “Mhallabiet Al-Halib“, I used sugar flavored with geranium, but I couldn’t find it now. Here is the photo of the sugar Geranium Sugar.
Watch this video of “Chef Mohammad Orfali” making “Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan”.
Check my video:
Making Aruz Bel-Halib Mbattan
