Atayef, or qatayef, are Middle Eastern pancakes that are deep-fried until golden brown and drizzled with simple syrup.

Atayef is one of the most common desserts in Egypt during Ramadan, and it's absolutely delicious! These crispy deep-fried pancakes are drizzled with sweet syrup and stuffed with a salty melted cheese filling, a crunchy cinnamon walnut filling, or ashta (cream). This recipe covers making these stuffed pancakes with walnuts or shredded cheese- you pick!

How to Make Atayef

Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the wet ingredients (warm water and rose water). Mix until you get a slightly runnier consistency than pancake batter (you might need slightly more water). Cover the pancake batter with a towel to rest for an hour.

Prepare the simple syrup by mixing all the ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring it to a boil while mixing it frequently until it thickens. Set the thick sugar syrup aside to cool.

keeping atayef moist by covering it with a towel.

Heat a non-stick pan to medium heat. Scoop the batter using a measuring cup (¼ cup) or ice cream scoop. Do not flip the pancake! Remove once small bubbles have formed. Keep the bubbly side up and drape a tea towel over the pancakes so they don't dry out. Repeat until the batter is finished.

shredded cheese and crushed walnuts in bowls.

Shred the cheese. Mix cinnamon, sugar, and crushed walnuts in a bowl.

Scoop about one heaping teaspoon onto one half of the pancake.

add shredded cheese to the Middle Eastern pancake.

Do the same if you're filling them with cheese.

fold the pancake into a half moon shape and crimp the edges closed.

Fold over the pancake and pinch the sides together firmly with your fingers. Repeat until all pancakes are stuffed.

Heat the oil in a deep frying pan, and test it by dropping a tiny piece of dough into it. If it starts bubbling, the oil is hot enough. Drop the filled atayef in the oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden, then remove from the oil with a slotted spatula to a plate lined with paper towels.

close up view of atayef Middle Eastern stuffed pancakes

Drizzle the aromatic simple sugar syrup on top. Serve immediately.

Tips and Tricks

Prepare the syrup ahead of time. The syrup in this recipe is the same simple syrup I use for my basbousa, as well as almost any Middle Eastern dessert. The best time to prepare the syrup is while the batter is resting, this way you'll be time-efficient, and you'll give the syrup enough time to cool and thicken before you pour it onto your qatayef.
Let the batter rest. Since the batter has both yeast and semolina in it, you're going to have to be patient and let it rest for at least 45 minutes, but preferably around an hour. This gives time for the yeast to activate, which gives qatayef their signature bubbly texture, and for the semolina to absorb liquid and soften.
Use a measuring cup or ice cream scoop to pour the batter. To get perfectly-sized atayef every time, I use a ¼ cup measuring cup to pour the silky atayef pancake batter onto the nonstick pan. This will also help get perfectly round pancakes that will fold easily.
Cover cooked pancakes with a towel. This makes sure your qatayef pancakes don't dry out and stay soft and flexible for when you stuff them.
Don't stack cooked pancakes. Since these pancakes are only cooked on one side, they tend to be very delicate. Place them side by side or slightly overlapping to prevent them from sticking to each other.

Variations and Substitutions

Stuff these deep-fried pancakes with a variety of cheese: nabulsi, akkawi cheese, mozzarella, shelal, ricotta, or plain white cheese.
It's also common to fill atayef with homemade ashta cream, which is what's more common in Egypt. Ashta is the same as clotted cream.

📋 Recipe

Atayef Middle Eastern Stuffed Pancakes

Author: Samara Alkhammach

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Prep: 1 30

Cook: 20

Total: 2

5 from 13 votes

Print Pin Rate

Servings 20

Atayef, or qatayef, are crispy, sweet, Middle Eastern pancakes stuffed with cheese, nuts, or cream. They are a popular dessert during the month of Ramadan.

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

Qatayef Pancake Batter

1 ½ cup all-purpose flour see Note 4
½ cup semolina see Note 4
2 cups warm water
2 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 teaspoon baking powder
1-2 tablespoon rosewater optional
¼ teaspoon salt

Nut Stuffing

½ cup crushed walnuts
2 tablespoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Cheese Stuffing

¾ cup nabulsi akkawi, shelal, or mozzarella cheese

Sugar Simple Syrup

⅔ cup sugar
⅔ cup water
1 tablespoon orange blossom water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Mix the dry ingredients together, then add the warm water and rose water. Mix until you get a consistency that's slightly runnier than pancake batter (you might need slightly more water). Cover the pancake batter with a towel and let it rest for an hour.
Prepare the simple syrup by mixing all the ingredients in a pot, bring to a boil, and cook while mixing frequently until it thickens. Set aside to cool.
After your atayef batter has rested, heat a nonstick skillet or pan to medium heat. Scoop the batter using a measuring cup (¼ cup) or ice cream scoop. Once the batter has bubbled and changed in color slightly, take the pancake off the stove and cover it with a towel. Repeat until the batter is finished. Do not flip the pancake!
To make the walnut stuffing, mix the ingredients together, and chop or crush until you get a rough mixture. Scoop about 1 heaping teaspoon onto one half of the pancake, fold over, and pinch the sides together firmly with your fingers.
Do the same if you're filling them with cheese.
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan, test it out by dropping a tiny piece of dough into the oil. If it starts bubbling, the oil is hot enough.
Drop the qatayef in the oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Fry until golden, then remove from the oil with a slotted spatula to a plate.
Drizzle the simple sugar syrup on top. Serve immediately.

Notes

When cooking the pancakes, make sure the side facing up is no longer shiny before taking it off the heat. Don't flip the pancakes.
The pancakes can stick together; don't lay them directly on top of each other.
Storage: Make a double batch of atayef and store one in the freezer. Cook, stuff, and fold the pancakes, then place them in a freezer bag or airtight container. Then, defrost and deep fry them before serving. They'll store well for up to 2 months in the freezer.
Ingredient Notes:
- Semolina: You can use either coarse or fine semolina for this recipe, but it's one of the key ingredients.
- Rosewater: This part is optional. I like to add 2-3 tablespoons of rosewater to my atayef batter because I think it gives it a special flowery aftertaste. If you don't like rosewater, you can just skip it.
- Orange Blossom Water: The secret ingredient to Arab simple syrup. A tablespoon goes a long way and will leave your syrup tasting fresh.
- Cheese: Traditionally, you'd want to use Nabulsi or Akkawi cheese. But since both are really hard to find here in Cairo, I use the slightly saltier shelal cheese. You can also use fresh mozzarella.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is the best option, but I've also used whole wheat flour before and got the same results. Stay away from coarser flours like wholemeal and cornmeal, though.