Halawet El Smeed | Semolina Pudding with Mastic

Halawet Smeed is a type of semolina pudding sold across the Levant as coloured slices that are flavoured with mastic and orange blossom water.

Halawet El Smeed | Semolina Pudding | Beets

After I made that Beet Chocolate cake, I made a small batch of Halawet Smeed with the leftover beet puree to mimic Sawsan's pink kraiza. Whenever I try a "foreign" food, I like to do some reading to know more about the dish, the traditional way it is made and had, the variations, time of the year it is made, the occasions, etc. because I have the time! LOL! Well, No, because I love to know more "behind the scenes" about these recipes. I did not do any of this when I first made Halawet Smeed or Kraiza as part of the #mfbchallenge because Sawsan had a very personal beautiful story for it...

What is Halawet El Smeed?

Halawet Smeed is traditionally made with just fine semolina, sugar and water. If you add milk instead of water, then it becomes Layali Lubnan! I also found some versions with cheese, milk, crushed nuts and some that are served warm! Now, going by the name of the dish, there should be no cheese unless it is Halawet el Jibn (sweet cheese) which is another popular Arab dessert with clotted cheese rolled in semolina dough. But who am I to judge?

As recipes always have room for enhancement, feel free to add milk, and nuts, serve hot, warm, or cold or make layers of this with cheese between each layer - there is no end to possibilities because we are talking about Semolina! 🙂 Semolina is one thing I never run out of after bananas. From savoury to sweet - there is nothing Semolina can't do. I have thought of starting a Semolina exclusive food blog too. Too ambitious? 🙂 And then we also have the bright colour of BEET!

How is Halawet El Smeed prepared?

Making this semolina pudding is super easy. All you need to do is dump all the ingredients into a deep pot, stir until thickens, pour it into a tray and chill to have it cold or serve you may serve warm! So simple but results in melt-in-mouth deliciousness.

I have flavoured this halawet with Orange Blossom water and mastic gum. I was not sure if Mr F would like the idea of a "pink" dessert, but he enjoyed it and asked for more. What I am sharing today is not very different from what I have already shared except for the colour and portion. So I thought I will put down the recipe here.

Like I mentioned earlier in this post, I used the beet just to add natural colour and you don't get the taste of beetroot because the orange blossom water and the mastic cover it up. You can still make Halawet El Smeed by substituting the beet water with just plain water and a dash of food colour.

Halawet El Smeed Recipe | Semolina Pudding with Mastic

INGREDIENTS

½ cup fine semolina
½ cup sugar
2 cups of water*
a drop of food colour of choice
3 mastic beads crushed with a teaspoon of sugar
½ teaspoon Orange Blossom water or rose water or any flavour you like

METHOD

Add the semolina, coloured water, sugar and crushed mastic into a deep pot.
Cook over low to medium heat while stirring continuously until the mixture thickens.
Stir in the orange blossom water and take the pudding off the heat.
Pour the pudding into any wide tray to about 1 cm thickness.**
Allow the pudding to cool down completely and then refrigerate it for at least two hours.
Cut and serve cold as is or with some crushed nuts.

*Stir in some water to the beet puree and strain it to use for this recipe or just use your favourite food colour or skip the colour.

** You can pour them into individual serving cups or a brownie pan so you can cut them all into equal squares.

I cut a few squares you see here purely for the pics. The rest of it - we scooped right out of the pan!