Cheese & Upper Egypt specialities

Black honey (sugarcane molasses) — large

140 EGP / piece

Black honey is sugarcane juice reduced over heat until it is thick and dark: almost black-brown, dense, sweet with a faint bitter finish. It is not bee honey — it is a cane product, and its home is the Upper Egyptian breakfast table. The best-known way to eat it is with tahini: mix the two in a dish and dip baladi or bettaw bread — a complete, old, inexpensive breakfast. It also goes into baking such as kahk and basbousa, into some sweets, and is taken by the spoon. Keep it in a sealed jar in a dry place away from sun. The texture changes with temperature, looser in summer and thicker in the cold, which is normal. A small size is also available.