Mahalabia Milk Pudding

I always love preparing Muhalabia, a cold and silky milk and rice flour pudding that can be easily made with just a few ingredients. This popular Arabic dessert is adored by everyone that eats it.

Lebanese people adore their muhalabia as it is a quick go-to Arabian dessert that takes about 10 minutes to make and has a delightful fragrant sweet flavor.

It is also known as muhalabi, muhalabiyeh, mahalabi, mahalebi depending on the country and region and can be found across the Middle East and Mediterranean regions.

Traditionally made with full cream milk, this version is a creamy vegan milk pudding, similar in texture to panna cotta or creme caramel (if using cornstarch, but I usually reserve this ingredient to make haytaliyeh).

Normally, this milk pudding is enjoyed as a cold dessert after dinner in our family, but feel free to indulge in it anytime you like. It is reminiscent of Lebanese rice pudding.

Key Ingredients

I always made muhalabia with full cream milk, but in the last few years following a plant-based diet, I now make this as a vegan pudding using a dairy-free milk, usually organic almond milk. The one thing I have noticed with the different plant milk is the coloring, so experiment with different kinds of milk until you find one you like. 

A white rice flour is dissolved into the milk to achieve the thick creamy texture, which is usually sweetened with white sugar, however, I have used turbinado sugar (raw sugar) instead of white as it is less processed.

Another opportunity to use rice flour in a sweet pudding is moghli, which doesn't include any milk.

These next few ingredients might be new to you, mastic is a plant resin that has a unique fresh flavor, this is a legendary ancient ingredient used across the Middle East, Greece and Turkey.

If you can’t get your hands on mastic, just leave it out, but I do recommend it, whilst I have linked to it so that you can buy it online, it is normally found at the counter of your local Middle Eastern/Mediterranean grocer. I also use it to make sahlab, a warm milk drink.

As the name suggests, orange blossom water and rose water are made from flowers and contribute a very delicate floral flavor. I adore these ingredients and always buy the Cortas brand in a duo pack, my pantry isn’t complete without them.

If you prefer not to include both mastic and the blossom waters, replace them with vanilla.

Garnishes

Typical Arabian garnishes include dried rose petals, crushed pistachio or a dusting of cinnamon. You could also opt for coconut shavings, or your favorite fruit - fresh or preserve.

Or for extra sweetness, top it with a sugar syrup.

Storage

As muhalabia is a chilled dessert, I like to pour it straight out of the pot and into individual portions, then wait until they cool down to room temperature before covering them with cling film and keeping them in the fridge for up to a week.

When it comes to serving I pull the portions out of the fridge and garnish as per the suggestions above.