Sahlep (Turkish Hot Milk Drink with Cinnamon)

Method

1. 1
   • milk5 dl
   • cornstarch2 tbsp
   • white sugar2 tbsp

   Slake the cornstarch cold — Whisk the cornstarch and sugar into 100 ml of the cold milk in a small bowl until there is not a single lump left. Starting cold is the whole trick — tip cornstarch into hot milk and you get lumps you can never whisk out.

2. 2
   • milk5 dl
   • cinnamon stick1
   • salt1 pinch

   Infuse the milk with cinnamon — Pour the remaining milk into a small heavy saucepan with the cinnamon stick and the pinch of salt. Warm it over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until it steams and trembles at the edges but never boils.

   ⏱5 min
3. 3
   • milk5 dl

   Thicken the drink — Pour the cold slurry into the hot milk in a thin stream, whisking the whole time. Keep whisking over medium-low heat for 6-7 minutes, until it thickens to the consistency of pouring cream and coats the back of a spoon in a layer you can draw a line through.

   ⏱7 min
4. 4
   • white sugar2 tbsp
   • cinnamon stick1
   • rose water1 tsp
   • vanilla extract½ tsp

   Perfume with rose and vanilla — Take the pan off the heat, fish out the cinnamon stick and stir in the rose water and vanilla extract. Taste and add a little more sugar if you like it sweeter; the drink should be gently perfumed, not floral like soap.

5. 5
   • ground cinnamon½ tsp
   • pistachios1 tbsp

   Dust and serve hot — Pour into two warmed mugs, dust the surface generously with ground cinnamon and scatter the chopped pistachios over. Drink it hot, with a spoon if it thickens further as it stands.