Babies and Weddings = KUNAFA

I have only been in the occupied Palestinian territories for 3 and a half months. But in this short span of time- among my co workers there have been:

• 3 engagements
• 4 babies

That's pretty solid- compared to my history with these two exciting times. These two "events" also entail a serious investment in Kunafa- for friends, family and co-workers. Palestinians aren't afraid of bringing food into the picture for every occasion.

Turns out it is tradition to bring Kunafa after you are engaged or you have a child. Kunafa is a delight from the Middle East that has different variations. The most famous version of this pastry among the Palestinians is the Nablusiya-- the Kunafa from Nablus (a city in the West Bank).

Kunafa is absolutely DELICIOUS. One of the most wonderful desserts, and a runner up to Baklava.

Kunafa contains: white cheese, sugar, pastry paste, pistachios, cooking fat.

A glorious mix of essentials. Here my friend is teaching me how to make Kunafa:
(Usually the cheese is on the bottom, but she will flip it over). The final product looked like this:
My co-worker just got engaged (MABROUK!) and he brought in a professional and very, very, large Kunafa. I asked my co-workers to put their hands next to it so you could see how big it was.