Bougatsa Cheese Filled Filo Pastry Recipes

BOUGATSA (GREEK CREAM-FILLED PHYLLO PASTRIES)

Steps:

• Beat eggs until frothy; beat in sugar until thick and foamy, about 4 minutes. Set aside.
• Heat milk in medium pot until hot but not boiling.
• Remove from heat and whisk into egg mixture in a thin stream until all the milk mixture is used up - never stop whisking.
• Pour custard mixture back into pot and set on medium-low heat; cook, stirring constantly, about 3-4 minutes.
• Gradually sprinkle in semolina, letting it flow out of your hand in a thin stream; add a pinch of salt.
• Reduce heat to very low, cook, stirring constantly, until thick and smooth, about 5-6 minutes. Whisk in pieces of cut up butter, incorporating completely into the semolina custard.
• Remove, place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the custard and cool completely.
• When cool, stir in juice, lemon zest and vanilla.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Unroll one sheet of phyllo, keeping remainder covered with dampened kitchen towel.
• Place on a work surface, with narrow end facing you.
• Brush lightly with melted butter.
• Place 3 tbsp of custard on lower 1/3 of phyllo.
• Using a thin, flexible spatula, spread custard into a wide rectangle, approximately 10x5 inches, nearly covering lower third of phyllo.
• Fold right and left sides of phyllo towards center so that edges just meet; lightly brush folded sides with butter.
• Fold lower third up and brush with butter.
• Fold upper third down and brush with butter.
• It should now look like an envelope.
• Place on a lightly buttered baking sheet and repeat envelope-making procedure 7-9 more times (depending on how many bougatsa you are making).
• Brush tops of bougatsa with any remaining butter and bake until golden-brown, about 15-18 minutes.
• Let cool 20 minutes before serving.
• Serve warm, dusted with icing sugar (you should see a coating of the icing sugar) and cinnamon.

BOUGATSA - CRISPY FILO PASTRY FILLED WITH WARM CUSTARD CREAM

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl whisk together the eggs and cornstarch. Set aside.
• In a cooking pot add milk, sugar, and vanilla extract. Heat over medium-high heat.
• Once milk reaches a boiling point remove from heat. Using a ladle, start pouring milk slowly, into the egg mixture while whisking constantly.
• Incorporate half the milk into the eggs and then transfer the mixture back to the pot.
• Transfer pot back to the heat and keep whisking until cream thickens.
• Set cream aside while you prepare the base.
• Preheat oven to 200°C / 392°F.
• Lay open the filo stack on your working surface.
• Grease a 15x10 inch / 38x25 cm baking dish with melted butter.
• Take one filo sheet and gather it up together (to make it look wavy) to the corner of the dish. Repeat process with 4 more filo sheets to cover the whole bottom of the dish.
• Drizzle using the ⅓ of the melted butter.
• Bake filo for 5 minutes or until it gets a golden color all over on top.
• Remove from the oven and spread the cream evenly on top.
• Add the remaining filo sheets exactly the same way as you did for the base. You may tear a filo sheet apart in order to fill empty spaces.
• Drizzle remaining butter on top.
• Bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until filo looks crispy and deep golden in color.
• Set pastry aside for 10-15 minutes.
• Dust with plenty of icing sugar and cinnamon. Ready to cut and serve!

BOUGATSA (CHEESE FILLED FILO PASTRY)

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cheese, sugar, eggs and vanilla and beat with a mixer till creamy smooth.
• Brush the bottom of a 10x14x2 inch baking pan or dish with the butter. Have ready the filo sheets, keeping them covered with plastic wrap to prevent them from drying out. Lay a filo sheet in the bottom of the pan and brush with butter. Repeat, brushing with butter, 5 more times.
• Pour the filling mixture over the stacked and buttered filo sheets. Drizzle the filling with a little melted butter, then layer 5 more filo sheets on top, again brushing each sheet.
• Cover the pan and refrigerate until the butter firms up. Can be pre-assembled up to this point.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• With a sharp knife, score the surface of the pastry through the top 5 sheets of filo dough into 10 diamonds or rectangles. Bake until golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer pastry to a rack and let cool for 10 minutes. Cut along the score marks and finish allowing to cool until warm or to room temperature. Dust with powdered sugar and serve.

FILO ROLLS FILLED WITH CREAMY CUSTARD (SWEET BOUGATSA)

Steps:

• Warm the milk in a saucepan and add the orange zest. Bring to a simmer and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a medium pot. Stir in the semolina and mix with a wooden spoon until fragrant and lightly toasted, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the orange-infused hot milk, mixing well until thoroughly blended. Next, add the sugar and stir well until the mixture is slightly thickened. Stir in the vanilla and remove from the heat. Off heat, stir the mixture occasionally to keep the custard from forming a skin. Allow the custard to cool slightly.
• Beat the eggs and egg yolks in a mixing bowl. Add to the pot and mix well to combine - the mixture should have the consistency of a pudding. Cover well with plastic wrap and set the mixture aside until ready to use (at this point you can refrigerate it for up to four days for later use).
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• Open the box of filo and unwrap the sheets. Place on a work surface and cut the whole stack of filo sheets in half so that you are left with rectangular pieces, which measure approximately 9 x 13 inches.
• Lay 3 sheets of filo one on top of each other, brushing melted butter between each sheet. As you lay the sheets down, keep the shorter end facing you. Then, place about ⅓ cup of the custard mixture in the bottom center of the filo stack, approximately 1.5" from the edges. Fold the bottom edge of the filo over the custard and then fold in each of the sides, so the custard is fully covered by the filo. Flip the filo and custard over and away from you and brush the top with a little melted butter. Continue folding the strip of filo until you reach the end of your rectangle. At this point, tuck the end piece under the rest of the rolled filo and brush the top with butter. With the help of a spatula, transfer the filo roll to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat until you have filled as many rolls as you want.
• Bake in middle rack of the oven for approximately 12-15 minutes or until light, golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly on a baking rack. Dust with cinnamon and powdered sugar and enjoy while still a little warm.