In her 2003 cookbook Delights from the Garden of Eden, Nawal Nasrallah quotes a recipe she found in a 1950s cookbook for a nougat-like candy called natif using manna as the main ingredient. The recipe, meant for professional candy makers, assumes readers have collected the manna themselves and instructs them on how to clean out the dirt and twigs. The recipe is interesting to read, but nearly impossible to follow.
Ingredients
12 pounds manna
100 eggs
3 pounds almonds
Toasted flour as needed
Confectioners sugar
Instructions
1. Soak the manna in hot water overnight to help it dissolve. Strain it through fine cheesecloth and then put it on low heat, in a very big pot.
2. Add 25 eggs and stir. The mixture will be clear in about 30-45 minutes. Strain it again. All the soil and dirt will be removed with the help of the coagulated eggs.
3. Return manna to heat, bring it to a boil, and then add the whites of the remaining 75 eggs. Stir constantly over low heat until manna becomes a light-colored paste, five to six hours. It is ready when the spoon is lifted from the pan and the manna adhering to it breaks off. Immediately fold in the toasted almonds.
4. When the manna is cool enough to handle, form it into flat cakes or balls about two-inches in diameter. Roll each piece in flour.
5. When completely cooled off, layer the pieces in tins or small wooden boxes with plenty of confectioners sugar between the pieces.