Delicious filo pastry desserts

Greek phyllo dough is very popular all over the world. It is very thin and airy. Therefore, phyllo dough dishes are incredibly tender and original. The base is neutral in taste. From it you can cook various sweet pies, rolls, cakes, as well as all kinds of unsweetened snacks in the form of envelopes. The dough contains a small amount of fat. Therefore, it is low in calories.

As a rule, filo dough is sold frozen. Therefore, before cooking, it must be completely thawed. In this case, the layers will become elastic and pliable in work. Of course, you can cook such a product yourself. But the procedure is quite complicated and requires professionalism and skill. The process takes about 3 hours. No special components are required. All components of the base can be found in the nearest supermarket. Therefore, if you have the desire and time, then it is quite possible to cook the dough yourself.

Luxurious filo pastry strudel

If you are thinking about what dishes to cook with filo dough, then start with the Austrian apple strudel. In the classic sense, this sweet pastry is a transparent dough pie with a lot of apples, spices and nuts. The strudel turns out incredibly airy with the thinnest crispy crust. It is customary to serve it hot with a scoop of ice cream.

To prepare Austrian pastries, we need ready-made dough, dense apples of sweet and sour varieties. It is important that the apples do not give a lot of juice and retain their shape after baking in the oven. Therefore, fruits with “loose” pulp will not work. The composition of the filling necessarily includes pitted raisins and spices, which will give the baking a special charm.

Ingredients:

• Apples – 3 pcs;
• Phyllo dough – 10 sheets;
• Raisins – 50 g;
• Olive oil – 3 tablespoons;
• Butter – 2 tsp;
• Cane sugar – 50 g;
• Ground cinnamon – 1 tsp;
• Nutmeg – ¼ tsp;
• Orange juice – 2 tablespoons;
• Walnut – 2 tbsp.

Cooking method:

1. We will start the process of preparing the strudel with the preparation of raisins, which must be poured with cold water and left for 15 minutes. Then the dried fruit is washed, poured with boiling water and aged for 5-7 minutes. It should swell and become soft;
2. My apples, peel, remove the core with the stalk, cut into medium-sized cubes or thin slices;
3. Heat the butter in a high sided frying pan. As soon as it melts, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to it. Put the apple slices, spices and orange juice into the heated oil;
4. We throw the raisins into a colander. When excess water drains, we send it to apples;
5. Grind the walnuts and spread them to the rest of the filling components. Cook literally 2-3 minutes and remove from heat;
6. We discard the stuffing in a colander. The separated juice is not poured out, but mixed with the remaining olive oil;
7. Baking tray, lined with parchment paper. Start laying out layers of phyllo dough one by one. Lubricate each layer with juice mixed with olive oil, sprinkle with brown sugar. Now lay out our filling in the center in the form of a rectangle;
8. We wrap the edges, starting from the narrow side, and then we turn the roll itself;
9. Lubricate the upper part of the strudel with oil juice. We send pastries for 35 minutes in an oven preheated to 190 degrees;
10. Sprinkle the finished roll with powdered sugar, cut into pieces and serve to the table, adding a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

In the classic version, the strudel is served warm. But when using phyllo dough, it turns out to be very crispy and tasty, so it is also good cold.

Crispy filo dough appetizer

In Greece, phyllo dough is used everywhere. Experienced chefs know that it is suitable for preparing sumptuous breakfasts. The dough is supplemented with eggs, cheese, vegetables, sausages and other ingredients. The composition of the filling depends on personal preferences. For example, very tasty envelopes are made from cottage cheese mixed with herbs and garlic. A lot of snack options can be prepared with the inclusion of an egg, which acts as a kind of sauce.

There is a similar appetizer in Armenian cuisine. It’s called Yoka. For its preparation, thin Armenian lavash is used. But when working with filo dough, the appetizer turns out to be incredibly tender and crispy. The dough itself is very thin. Therefore, it should be laid out on a dry plate, then supplemented with filling and put into heated vegetable oil very carefully. It is better to tilt the plate so that the envelope slides into the pan on its own. The number of layers of filo dough is taken taking into account the number of servings. Of course, the base must be completely defrosted.

Ingredients:

• Phyllo dough – 2 layers;
• Chicken egg – 2 pcs.;
• Ham – 70 g;
• Hard cheese – 30 g;
• Salt, black pepper – to taste;
• Dried herbs – optional.

Cooking method:

1. When preparing snacks, we work very quickly so that the base does not get wet. Therefore, all components must be cooked!
2. We cut the ham into small cubes or rub it together with cheese on a coarse grater;
3. Put the defrosted dough layer on a plate;
4. In the center we break a chicken egg, spread half of the ham, cheese, salt, pepper, supplement with herbs. We fold the base with an envelope;
5. We quickly transfer the workpiece to the heated vegetable oil;
6. Fry our appetizer on both sides until golden brown. Do the same with the second sheet of dough.

Turkish berek with cheese filling

Phyllo dough is used extensively for making Turkish pastries, which are incredibly tender. There are a huge number of pies, but it is not always possible to cook them the first time. Below is a proven recipe that even novice housewives will definitely succeed.

Turkish berek is a layer cake made of the thinnest dough with cheese filling. To prepare the filling, we need medium-fat cottage cheese. It is important that it is not too wet. Otherwise, the dough will get wet and become quite damp. We supplement the cottage cheese with feta cheese. The advantage of the pie is that it is made from simple ingredients. Therefore, it turns out to be budgetary.

Ingredients:

• Phyllo dough – 500 g;
• Cottage cheese 5% fat – 150 g;
• Chicken egg -3 pcs.;
• Feta – 250 g;
• Milk – 250 ml;
• Vegetable oil – 250 ml;
• Mineral sparkling water – 250 ml;
• Dill – 1 bunch;
• Salt – ½ tsp

Cooking method:

1. Grate cheese or chop with a fork until crumbly. We do the same with cottage cheese. Mix the ingredients in a bowl and add chopped dill to them. Salt to taste. If we use quite salty cheese, then salt is optional. The filling will not turn out too fresh. But it all comes down to personal preference;
2. We cover the baking sheet in which we will bake the cake with parchment paper. We have the first layer of defrosted filo dough;
3. In a separate bowl, mix eggs with milk and mineral water. As soon as the mass becomes homogeneous, add vegetable oil and beat again;
4. Pour a ladle of our filling onto a layer of dough, lay out part of the filling. Top the filling with a layer of dough. The base is torn when laying out. Therefore, it is not necessary that the layers be of the correct form;
5. Alternate layers of filling, filling and dough until the filling runs out;
6. We close the upper part with a layer of dough, fill the cake with the remaining filling. Now we stand our pastries for a couple of hours;
7. When the cake is completely saturated, we send it to bake for 30-40 minutes in an oven preheated to 200 degrees.

The cake will expand during baking. If desired, prick the top with a fork to release steam. But this manipulation is not mandatory. Due to the large amount of vegetable oil, the cake may seem greasy. But this is the specificity of Turkish cuisine: hearty and high-calorie!