LAMA AL JAHDALI

Lama’s passion for creating dishes developed when she was a little girl, observing her mother and other members of her family in the kitchen while they made food and tried different Saudi and international recipes. “You can share so much love with your family through food,” she says. In high school, she got involved with a community service project of cooking and baking snacks from all over the world to serve to those who haven’t had a chance to travel. “I wanted them to experience traveling to a different country with one bite,” she explains, as she had prepared food that wasn’t typically found in the Kingdom. She decided she was going to pursue this as a career, and ended up studying at Le Cordon Bleu in London. Lama has just successfully completed her tenure at Jeddah Season’s Japanese Restaurant Nobu, and is currently an entrepreneur. Instagram: cheflama.sa

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CARDAMOM & ROSE CHOUX AU CRAQUELIN RECIPE: Ingredients: Rose-infused craquelin crust:      Choux pastry: 1/2 tsp rose water 4 tbsp brown sugar 3 tbsp soft butter 6 tbsp flour Pinch of salt 1/4 cup water 4 tbsp butter 1/2 cup flour 2 eggs Cardamom Chantilly cream: Rose infused glaze:  1 egg 1 egg yolk 1/2 cup sugar 2 cups milk 1 tsp cardamom powder 4 tbsp cornstarch Pinch of salt 4 tbsp butter 1 tbsp water 1 tsp rose water Squeeze of lemon juice 2 tbsp icing sugar Pink food coloring Instructions: Rose-infused craquelin crust 1. Place butter, salt, brown sugar, and rose water in bowl, and cream ingredients together until creamy and fluffy. 2. Add flour and salt, and mix until crumbly. Bring the crumbly bits together using your hands, to form a dough. 3. Roll dough out, cut discs with a round cutter, and freeze. Choux Pastry Meanwhile, prepare the choux pastry. 1. In a saucepan, bring water and butter to boil. 2. Remove from heat, add flour and mix. 3. Return saucepan to the stove and heat again for 5 minutes stirring continuously. 4. Remove batter from heat until it pulls away from the sides of the pan. 5. Transfer batter to a separate bowl and allow to cool. Add eggs and beat butter using a wooden spoon or hand mixer until it reaches a glossy consistency. 6. On a paper-lined baking sheet, pipe the dough into 1-inch circles using a pastry bag with a round tip. 7. Remove the craquelin dough from freezer, and place the discs on top of the choux. 8. Bake for 30-40 minutes until browned, and prick each with a skewer to release steam. Allow to cool on a wire rack. Chantilly Cream 1. In a large bowl, whip eggs, sugar, salt, and starch with an electric mixer for 5 minutes until it becomes creamy and light in color. 2. In a saucepan on medium-high heat, pour milk and cardamom powder. 3. Once it starts to simmer, add a little to egg mixture and beat it quickly. 4. Add egg mixture to the milk and whisk well. 5. Put pan back on the heat and keep whisking until mixture thickens. 6. Transfer to a glass bowl and cover with a plastic cling wrap and keep in the fridge, covered, until ready to use. Icing For the icing, mix all the ingredients together. 1. For assembling, cut the choux discs in half sideways, pipe the chantilly cream filling, and place it back on together. 2. Top it with icing and serve.

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