Nazli

Queen [Queen Mother] of Egypt

Menu dated: 10^th July 1936

Luncheon at Edfina Palace, in the Nile Delta, hosted by Her Majesty the Queen Mother, Queen Nazli, of Egypt

The French language on this menu disguises an array of traditional Egyptian and other North African delicacies at the royal luncheon table of Her Majesty Queen Nazli of Egypt.

Suckling lamb, turkey-breast with eggplant, baked okra and saffron rice are a precursor to a spread of Egyptian sweet-pastries soaked and drizzled in syrups made from rosewater or honey; and topped with various nuts and creams.

At the time of this banquet Queen Nazli had been widowed for just three months following the death of her husband King Fuad I of Egypt.

Upon taking the throne the royal couple commenced their reign as His Highness the Sultan and Her Gloriness the Sultana of Egypt; but when Egypt ceased to be a British protectorate, a royal decree was issued proclaiming the couple King and Queen.

Nazli was King Fuad’s second wife; his first marriage ended disastrously and resulted in a domestic dispute of truly royal proportions.  The King’s soon to be ex brother-in-law shot the monarch in the throat – not killing him, but certainly scarring him for life.

At this royal luncheon in 1936 Nazli was the Queen Mother and still maintained close association with her eldest son who as now King Farouk I. In time, Nazli would be stripped of all her royal titles by an angry Farouk when she chose to remarry.

This luncheon was held at the Edfina Palace in northern Egypt’s Nile Delta. The palace was built in the 1700s by Khedive Ismail with extensions, in an Italian style, added during the reign of King Fuad who used the palace as a summer retreat.

This menu carries the hand-coloured embossed royal arms of Egypt; and is signed by Queen Nazli.

MENU

Hors d’œuvre varié

Sou-beurek aux poulets

Middle-eastern style pie consisting of layers of filo pastry separated by a chicken and cheese filling; served cut into triangular slices.

Dinde au riz à l’Egyptienne

Sautéed breasts of young turkey served with a pilaf flavoured with tomato and eggplant

Bamias à la Turque

Baked okra (gumbo) cooked with tomatoes, onion and olive oil

Agneau de lait Chawerma

Suckling lamb roasted on a vertical rotating spit similar to the method used for a döner-kebab

Salade à l’Orientale

A salad of rice, flavoured and coloured with saffron, mixed with onion, capsicum tomato and olives.

Bissara verte

Puréed fresh fava beans (broad beans)

Ekmek Kataif au Kaimak

Ekmek Kataif: Vermicelli-like pastry soaked in rose syrup; and topped with clotted cream and crushed pistachios.

Kaimak: Cylindrical desserts of pastry drizzled in a honey, cinnamon and lemon syrup

Bombe à la Princesse

Spherical mould of coffee ice-cream encasing cake steeped in maraschino syrup; covered in meringue and served with poached fruits.

Friandises

Petits-fours

Dessert