I was recently asked to participate in a workshop organized by the association in Greece “Action for Celiac Disease” for May – Awareness Month for Celiac disease.
The recipe I showed was the Vegan Gluten Free Phyllo Crust Sheet that you can’t find in shops. But at the same time, I made Mini Cheese Pies with this Phyllo Crust Sheet to show you can do with this Phyllo Crust Sheet. Baklava needs quite a lot of time and the 30-40 minutes I had for the workshop, was not enough.
I also want to make a dessert with this phyllo, and I was thinking of making mini Bougatsa – Greek Custard Pies. It was Saturday, 27th of May 2023 and in the morning, I had prepared 100 sheets of Phyllo Crust. And in the afternoon, I wrapped the mini cheese pies that I would bake them at the event.
I had already made the cream for Bougatsa and while I was about to make them, I suddenly remembered my godmother who, if she were alive, would have had a birthday that day. My godmother, as I have already written before, her origin was from Istanbul and was forced to leave there in the 60s and come to Greece with her family. One of her daughters left for Germany and so every year she went to visit her and see her grandchildren there. Go by train, it was a 36-hour journey. The only food she was taking with her to eat, for the 1.5 days was spending on the train to get there, were these Galaktobourekο (pipe shaped) that my mother prepared especially for her. My mother’s variation, which I learned today, was that she brushed with syrup along with the butter on each unbaked Phyllo Sheet before adding the cream.
As you can see, it is a sweet that can be easily stored outside the fridge because it has a natural preservative, the sugar. It is perfect for brunch or afternoon snack because has filling cream has polenta and makes fully satisfying for appetite. But also, is a perfect dessert for the summer, if you put it in the fridge, to cool it.
Dedicated in memory of my godmother Teresa!
Tip: Check off the ingredients you have used in the recipe or note the ingredients you have and add the rest to you shopping list to buy them. - Attention: All ingredients must be checked that are Gluten-Free and without traces of gluten.
Abbreviations: g=grams • kg= kilograms • cup=250 ml • tsp= teaspoon=5 ml • tbsp= tablespoon=3 tsp=15 ml • ml= millilitre= (1ml=0.034 fl oz / 1fl oz=29.6 ml) • l=litre/liter=1000ml
First you make the custard cream, so to cool down until you use it.
Place a saucepan, on a medium to high heat, with all the ingredients for the cream. Stir constantly until the cream thickens and then remove it from the heat.
Then you continue by making the syrup to let it cool, also.
In a saucepan over high heat, put sugar, water, honey, cinnamon stick, cloves and lemon peel.
Once it comes to a boil and the sugar melts and the mixture becomes transparent, pour the lemon juice, let it boil for 1-2 more minutes. Τhen remove it from the heat and let it cool.
Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F.
Butter a baking pan approximately 32Χ26cm/12.5”X10” inches.
On a Phyllo Crust Sheet with a help of a brush, smear the entire surface with butter and then add a little cream.
Wrap it in pipe shape and place it in the pan. In Greece we also do this wrap at sarmas which is vine or cabbage leaves, stuffed with rice.
We repeat the whole process until all the Phyllo Crust Sheets are finished and the pan is full.
Spread the melted butter that has been left over on all the pipes shaped galaktoboureko.
Bake at 200°C / 400°F for about 40 Minutes until gets a golden brown color.
As soon as you take the pan out of the oven, pour the syrup, little by little, on the hot baking pan with pipes shaped galaktoboureko. Don't be afraid if the syrup foams, it usually does and soaks up the liquid syrup immediately.
Let it cool well so to absorb all the syrup. Better leave it over a night, about 10 hours.
When it's time to serve, decorate it with sift icing sugar on top.
Ingredients
Directions
First you make the custard cream, so to cool down until you use it.
Place a saucepan, on a medium to high heat, with all the ingredients for the cream. Stir constantly until the cream thickens and then remove it from the heat.
Then you continue by making the syrup to let it cool, also.
In a saucepan over high heat, put sugar, water, honey, cinnamon stick, cloves and lemon peel.
Once it comes to a boil and the sugar melts and the mixture becomes transparent, pour the lemon juice, let it boil for 1-2 more minutes. Τhen remove it from the heat and let it cool.
Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F.
Butter a baking pan approximately 32Χ26cm/12.5”X10” inches.
On a Phyllo Crust Sheet with a help of a brush, smear the entire surface with butter and then add a little cream.
Wrap it in pipe shape and place it in the pan. In Greece we also do this wrap at sarmas which is vine or cabbage leaves, stuffed with rice.
We repeat the whole process until all the Phyllo Crust Sheets are finished and the pan is full.
Spread the melted butter that has been left over on all the pipes shaped galaktoboureko.
Bake at 200°C / 400°F for about 40 Minutes until gets a golden brown color.
As soon as you take the pan out of the oven, pour the syrup, little by little, on the hot baking pan with pipes shaped galaktoboureko. Don't be afraid if the syrup foams, it usually does and soaks up the liquid syrup immediately.
Let it cool well so to absorb all the syrup. Better leave it over a night, about 10 hours.
When it's time to serve, decorate it with sift icing sugar on top.
- Have always in mind this rule for syrup at cake desserts: one should be cold (room temperature) and the other hot. You can have the cake hot and the syrup cold (room temperature) or the cake cold (room temperature) and the syrup hot. If both are hot, the dessert will be like mud. If both are cold, the cake will not absorb the syrup.
- It’s better to bake it from the previous day of the one you have to serve it, so the dessert to have the time to rest, to cool down and absorb the syrup.
- Does not need to be refrigerated to preserve it because it has a natural preservative, which is sugar. The truth is that this dessert I baked, disappeared within 2 days. It is a perfect dessert for the summer also, if you put it in the fridge, to cool it.
Good Luck and Bon Appétit!!!
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