Znoud el-sit

The dessert is prepared by rolling the filling into baklava (filo) pastry sheets, shaping it into a rectangle or tube, it is then fried, and then soaked in a syrup called qatir, and finally garnished with pistachios and dried rose petals.^[5][6][1] The syrup is traditionally flavored with orange blossom water.^[7][8]

Look up زند in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

The origin of the name znoud el-sit is uncertain, with folk tales claiming it originated from Ottoman Syria, it is commonly believed that the name is derived from its shape.^[9][10] The name asabe Zainab (Arabic: أصابع زينب, lit. 'Zainab's fingers') is sometimes used instead, but it may also refer to a separate dessert similar to lokma.^[11][12][1] Both names follow a pattern in Arab cuisine where desserts are given feminine names, other such desserts include swar el-sit ("Lady's bracelet") and ghazl al-banat ("The girls' spinning"), a tahini-based candy floss.^[13][3] The name znoud el sit is attested in English texts as early 1965.^[14]

A common folk legend credits the name of the dessert to Ottoman statesman Mustafa Agha Barbar, then governor of Tripoli, Lebanon, while assigning its origin to Kirkuk, Iraq.^{[10][5][15][16]}

In Lebanon, and the greater Levant, as well as Iraq, znoud el-sit are a common dessert.^[17][18] The are typically made with layers of rolled phyllo sheets, stuffed with qishta, which are then fried and coated in syrup.^[17][18][19] They are traditionally served for Iftar during the month of Ramadan.^[4][5]

Znoud es-sit was traditionally fried in samneh.^[20][9]

Znoud el-sit were popularized in Egypt by refugees of the Syrian civil war.^[21][22]

In Omani cuisine, they are known as asabe Zainab and are filled with cheese instead of qishta.^[1][23]

Znoud el-sit are often served with coffee.^[4][7] They are also common during holidays or celebrations.^[5][24]

A comedy show named znoud el-sit after the sweet aired in 2013, every episode of the show showcased a different dish from Damascene cuisine.^[25][26]

• List of fried dough foods
• List of doughnut varieties
• List of desserts
• Arab cuisine
• Tamriyeh, Levantine sweet of fried cream-filled filo pastry