BUZA ‘ALA QAMAR AL-DIN
apricot leather ice cream
Qamar al-din, which means “moon of the religion,” is the Arabic name for apricot leather, though I do not know how it got such a poetic name. This ice cream is a classic Lebanese concoction that I first discovered in a Lebanese cookbook written by Ibrahim Mouzannar. I then tasted it at the Beirut shop of the late Hanna Mitri, Lebanon’s ice-cream maker extraordinaire. The shop is still going strong, manned by his son, who inherited Hanna’s secret formulas. The following recipe is not his but rather adapted from Mouzannar’s book Cuisine Libanaise. Hanna was notoriously secretive about his formulas and never shared them with anyone apart from his son.
MAKES ABOUT 11/4 QT [1.25 L]
1/3 cup [50 g] pine nuts
10 oz [300 g] apricot leather (see facing page)
2 cups [480 ml] whole milk
1 cup [240 ml] crème fraîche
1/2 cup [100 g] superfine sugar (optional)
1/4 cup [60 ml] orange blossom water
Place the pine nuts in a small bowl and pour over enough water to cover. Let sit for 1 hour.
Meanwhile, cut the apricot leather into medium-size pieces and put in a saucepan.
Add the milk to the pan and place over medium-low heat. Stir every now and then until the apricot leather has completely melted. Toward the end of cooking, use a whisk to facilitate the disintegration process, which will take 20 to 30 minutes. Do not leave the pan unattended for more than a few minutes; the milk may curdle if it is allowed to boil. Transfer to a 2-qt [2-L] measuring cup and add the crème fraîche. Whisk until well blended. Taste before adding the sugar, in case you find the mixture sweet enough already. Remember, though, that when the mixture freezes, the taste will become less sweet—in fact, freezing dulls all flavors. Add as much of the sugar as you wish, together with the orange blossom water; whisk until the sugar has completely dissolved.
Drain the pine nuts, rinse under cold water, and add to the apricot leather mixture. Stir to combine well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple of hours, until thoroughly chilled.
Transfer the mixture to an ice-cream maker and process according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Transfer to an airtight container and put in the freezer; leave the container uncovered for the first 10 minutes of freezing to avoid the formation of ice crystals. Store, covered, in the freezer for up to 1 month.