Kalburabastı – Traditional Turkish Colander Pastry

Preparation

1. 01

   Bring the syrup to the boil and let it cool

   Bring the sugar and water to the boil in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Once boiling, reduce the heat and let the syrup simmer gently for 8 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice, remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.

2. 02

   Knead and rest the dough

   Combine the flour, semolina, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the melted butter and yoghurt and knead with your hands to form a soft, smooth dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and leave to rest at room temperature for 20 minutes.

3. 03

   Press the dough through the sieve

   Dust the work surface with flour. Roll out the dough to approximately 1 cm thick. Place a coarse kitchen sieve (kalbur) opening-side down on the dough and press evenly with your hands to create the characteristic ridged pattern.

4. 04

   Cut the dough into diamonds and place in the tin

   Cut the pressed dough into even diamonds (approx. 4 × 3 cm) using a sharp knife. Place the pieces side by side with a small gap between them in a lightly greased rectangular baking tin (approx. 30 × 20 cm).

5. 05

   Bake until golden-brown

   Place the baking tin in the preheated oven and bake the kalburabastı until golden brown. Remove the tin from the oven and allow the pieces to cool in the tin for 5 minutes.

6. 06

   Pour over the syrup and allow to soak in

   Pour the completely cooled syrup evenly over the still warm, golden-brown kalburabastı pieces. Leave to soak for at least 30 minutes, until the syrup has been fully absorbed.

7. 07

   Sprinkle with walnuts

   Sprinkle the kalburabastı with finely ground walnuts and serve.