Web-Based TV show to depict new take on traditional Arabic sweets

AMMAN — Viewers of “Baklava Gone Black” are set to experience new tastes, textures and even colours of Middle Eastern delights as the traditional colours are transformed to black.  

Hosted by film director Laila Khan with Abdullah Zalatimo of Zalatimo Sweets, the show will follow the black food trend as Zalatimo’s dough is mixed with charcoal and squid ink to allow the transformation to occur.  

“No one has tried the formula with halaweyat [sweets] yet. It’s a mishmash of ingredients to elevate sweets and give them a new dimension,” Khan told The Jordan Times.

The show will be aired on YouTube in January, where Khan has another web-based TV show called Food on Four, about food trucks and street food around the world. Backlava Gone Black will also air on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.

Shot from Turkey where the Zalatimo factory is located, Khan said that she and her partner will be going on a road trip around the country to pick out local fresh produce from farmers’ markets or even  from farmers directly. Then, the fresh produce will be brought back to the kitchen and added to the show’s mix of charcoal or squid ink.

Khan, who majored in film and made a documentary titled “Stolen Water” in collaboration with the Ministry of Water, is creating this web-based TV show for a new target audience: “Food lovers and foodies — anyone that has a sweet tooth”. 

She concluded: “People are so comfortable with following the norm, and they are not so open to trying new things. I think this show will push the boat a bit and encourage chefs or homecooks from the Arab world to experiment with food and try new things.”