Phyllo Crinkle Dessert

pan of golden baked middle eastern Muakacha phyllo dessert

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Phyllo Crinkle Dessert

This Phyllo Crinkle Dessert, also known as Muakacha, combines buttery flaky pastry with a smooth custard, baked in three stages to crispy perfection and then drizzled with a warm simple syrup. It's an absolute showstopper dessert, yet incredibly easy to make. Perfect for a brunch, luncheon, holidays, or anytime.

Prep Time20

Cook Time50

Total Time1 10

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Keyword: middle eastern desserts, Muakacha, Phyllo Crinkle Dessert, phyllo dough recipes

Servings:

Ingredients

1 package (16 ounce) phyllo dough sheets , fully thawed but still chilled
1 cup + 2 tablespoons butter , melted, divided
1 cup whole milk
2 large eggs
2 cups granulated sugar , divided
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup finely crushed pistachios , for topping

Instructions

Defrost the phyllo dough in the refrigerator overnight, or according to package instructions.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush a 13x9 metal baking pan with 2 tablespoons of the melted butter.
Cover the phyllo with a lightly damp towel to prevent it from drying out as you work with a couple sheets at time.
Working with 2 sheets of phyllo dough at a time stacked together, grab the corners by the shorter end and hold them up horizontally, then fold them in an accordion style, scrunching in about 1 inch thickness, until you reach the end. (For visual help, don't miss the photos included in the article or the video below.)
Place the scrunched-up piece of phyllo dough onto the edge of the baking pan that has the same width with the folds facing up. Repeat until all the phyllo dough is used and the pan is full. Lightly adjust/fluff your phyllo accordions as needed to make sure they fill the pan loosely with no dense folds.
Transfer to the oven and bake for 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and evenly drizzle on the 1 cup melted butter.
Transfer back to the oven and bake another 10 minutes.
In the meantime, make the custard. Place the milk, eggs, 1 cup sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon in a large measuring container with a spout. Whisk together until fully incorporated.
Remove crinkle from the oven and pour the custard evenly over the top.
Return to oven, and bake until the custard is set and the top is golden and crispy, about 30-35 minutes (watch it carefully so it doesn't over-brown.)
Toward the end of the final bake time, make a simple syrup. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine remaining 1 cup sugar, water, and lemon juice. Whisk to combine and heat to a gentle simmer until it's thick like maple syrup, 8 to 10 minutes.
Once the crinkle is done baking, immediately drizzle the warm syrup evenly over the top. Sprinkle crushed pistachios on top.
Allow the dessert to cool completely to room temperature before you cut it into squares and serve.

Video

Notes

Add some citrus. Instead of vanilla, use orange or lemon zest in the custard filling. Or include rosewater in the simple syrup (traditionally used.)

Try other spices. Swap out the cinnamon with half the amount of cardamom or chai spice.

Change the nuts. Traditional Muakacha tops the dessert with crushed pistachios, but they can be replaced with crushed almonds or hazelnuts.

Make it chocolatey. You could include some chocolate chips in-between the folds before baking and after it's baked, dust with powdered sugar.

Sprinkle with rose petals. Finish the dish with some edible rose petals for a wow factor.

Nutrition