This Dessert Combines the Best of Baklava and the Dubai Chocolate Bar

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Pistachio cream has been my love language for at least the past year now, ever since the Dubai chocolate bar first graced my feed. To appreciate this, you do not necessarily need to be familiar with the Dubai chocolate bar, but some backstory does help. A few years ago, Sarah Hamouda, the founder of Fix Dessert Chocolatier in Dubai, created a new confection—a mixture of pistachio cream and toasted kataifi (very fine strands of pastry formed by drizzling a batter onto a cooking surface) encased in a luxurious bar of dark chocolate. It became a sensation after an ASMR-style TikTok video of the dessert went viral and inspired content creators worldwide to make their own versions. Today, you can even buy DIY kits as well as copycat Dubai chocolate bars for an exorbitant price at corner stores in New York City. 

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

The trend also sparked countless riffs online, leading to a surge in interest in pistachio cream, and it's well on its way to becoming the new Nutella. I've shared my favorite ways to use it (I've recently been putting it in a luscious, white hot chocolate), and our Birmingham-based team has even turned it into a tart. I've been calling my latest (and probably not last) riff Dubai chocolate triangles. They're a phyllo-wrapped pastries with a filling of pistachio cream, tahini, pistachios, and toasted kataifi, baked until golden, dipped in chocolate, and finished with a sprinkle of roasted pistachios.

For a Better Crunch, Use Dried Kataifi 

While similar to phyllo dough, kataifi is not exactly the same. Kataifi is made from a liquid batter that's drizzled and cooked into very thin strands similar to vermicelli noodles. Since the Dubai chocolate bar trend began, it has become readily available online in dried form. It's more challenging to find in stores; you'll likely need to stop at a Middle Eastern grocery store, where you are more likely to find it frozen rather than dried. The dried version is a little easier to work with, and I noticed it gets crispier than the frozen kataifi, which is a good thing in this context. Whether you're buying it dried or frozen, kataifi comes in reasonably large quantities, so use the rest to make kanafeh or toast some up in butter and sprinkle it on your salads, pasta, or eggs.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Work Quickly to Avoid Cracked Phyllo 

Phyllo is easy to find in most grocery stores, usually right next to the frozen puff pastry. It is, however, a little challenging to work with because it tends to dry out very quickly once unfolded and exposed to air. Covering it with a towel can help keep it moist, but cooks often debate whether you should use a dry or damp towel to do this.

A damp towel traps moisture better but may cause your phyllo sheets to stick together, while a dry one may not retain enough moisture to prevent them from cracking. I've tried it both ways and choose to use a damp towel—not a sopping wet towel, but one with the slightest hint of moisture. If your towel is too wet, you may well end up with stuck-together sheets. Fortunately, most boxes of phyllo have 40 sheets, so you will still have more than enough even if there are a few setbacks. 

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Unless you are a phyllo expert, there will be some cracks and breakage along the way, but fret not: Little cracks and tears will hardly be noticeable in your final product, and you'll have enough sheets in the package to keep going even if some crack beyond repair. The best move is to make a pile of discards and toast them up later; toasted shards of phyllo are very tasty, and like the kataifi, they make a nice topping for plenty of other dishes.  

Get Pre-Roasted, Shelled Pistachios 

Yes, you can shell and toast your own nuts, but not only is that a lot of work, but there's also a fine line between perfectly roasted and burnt. The shelled and roasted pistachios save you time while delivering a more consistently roasted result. As a bonus, pre-toasted pistachios generally have a brighter green color, which makes your triangles more visually appealing. It's not always easy to find roasted and unsalted pistachios, so if you're using salted pistachios, omit the salt from the recipe.

Taste Your Pistachio Cream

I can't stress enough, please taste your pistachio cream before using it for this or any recipe. Many different brands are available now, and while most of them are tasty, they can vary a lot in flavor and sweetness. While I love Pistacchiosa, for example, it is saltier than most. Other brands are super sweet.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

The recipe below can't account for such a wide range of pistachio products on the market, so please taste and adjust accordingly! Omit the salt if your pistachio cream tastes salty, and consider using an even more bittersweet chocolate if your pistachio cream is extremely sweet to balance it out.

For a Shinier Ganache, Add Corn Syrup

While it's optional in this recipe, pastry chefs love using corn syrup for the glossy finish it gives chocolate. It also helps keep the ganache fluid, making it easier to dip your triangles and giving you a little extra time to sprinkle on the pistachios before the chocolate sets. Its benefits are mostly aesthetic, though, so if you don't bake often and don't have corn syrup on hand, feel free to skip it—your triangles will still be beautiful.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

If Your Chocolate Breaks, Just Add Cream

Tempering chocolate is an art; a few degrees can be the difference between chocolate glory and disaster. When I was developing this recipe, our senior editor and former restaurant pastry chef, Genevieve, shared a trick with me: As you're melting the chocolate, add more cream and keep stirring if it starts to seize or look grainy. There needs to be enough liquid to coat the chocolate's cocoa particles, but, as she explains in her fabulous water ganache recipe, the darker the chocolate, the more cocoa particles, and the more liquid you'll need to keep it fluid.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

For the Filling: In a small skillet, melt butter over medium heat until foamy, about 2 minutes. Add kataifi pastry and cook, stirring often and breaking up clumps with a wooden spoon, until browned, about 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and let rest at room temperature until cooled, about 15 minutes

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Add pistachios to kataifi bowl along with pistachio cream, tahini, and salt. Using a flexible spatula, gently fold to combine; set aside.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

To Assemble and Cook: Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside. Unroll the phyllo sheets and, using a sharp knife or pizza wheel, cut dough into 6- by 11-inch strips. Cover phyllo strips with a lightly damp kitchen towel until ready to use to prevent them from drying out.

Place one phyllo strip on a clean work surface with the short side facing you. Brush entire strip with melted butter. Fold it in half lengthwise like a book, bringing the left edge to meet the right edge, to create a strip that is 3 by 11 inches. Brush again with butter. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling (about 20g) about 1 inch from the bottom of the strip towards the right side. Fold the left bottom corner of the phyllo strip over filling to tightly enclose and form a triangle. Continue folding the triangle, flipping right and then left until you reach the end of the strip. Use a sharp knife or kitchen scissors to trim any excess phyllo pastry.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Place folded triangle seam-side down on prepared baking sheet and cover loosely with another damp kitchen towel until ready to bake. Repeat with remaining phyllo strips and filling, arranging each pastry on the baking sheet about 1 inch apart.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Bake, rotating baking sheet front to back halfway through, until lightly golden and crisp, 18 to 20 minutes. Let the triangles cool completely.

For the Ganache: Place chocolate in a medium heatproof measuring cup or mug. In a small saucepan, stir together heavy cream and corn syrup, if using, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, about 4 minutes. Pour over chocolate and let stand until chocolate softens, about 1 minute, then stir until smooth. Cool chocolate mixture until warm but still pourable (100 to 105ºF; 38 to 40ºC), about 3 minutes.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Holding triangles by one corner, carefully dip half the pastry in chocolate to coat, letting any excess chocolate drip back into the cup before returning pastry to baking sheet. Sprinkle chocolate with chopped pistachios before it sets.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Repeat with remaining triangles. Refrigerate until set, about 10 minutes.

Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Special Equipment

Sharp knife, pizza wheel, or kitchen scissors, 9-by-13-inch rimmed baking sheet, ruler, instant-read thermometer

Notes

You can easily find dried kataifi online and frozen kataifi at many Mediterranean and Middle Eastern markets, often in the frozen pastry aisle.

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