Many people find working with Filo dough to be complicated, but in fact, it is very easy once you get the grip of it.
The great thing about this thin, paper-like dough, is that it allows you to control the type and amount of fat you want to use, and it can be formed into many different shapes; from the traditional triangles, as shown here, to squares, layers, cups and more. The variety of fillings is also endless, from savory to sweet.
If you can get the fresh dough, you can use the dough immediately. For best results using the frozen dough, make sure to defrost it slowly, in the fridge, overnight, so you’ll end up with nicely separated sheets.
The thinner the sheets are, the more flaky and delicate the result will be, yet, the thicker types are easier to handle, so if you’re just beginning to use Filo, it may be a better choice for you.
A few things to remember when working with Filo:
* The dough dries out quickly, so it’s important to cover the sheets while working.
* Brush or spray a layer of oil or clarified butter on each layer, so that the sheets will get nice and crispy.
* Brush the pastries top with a bit more oil before baking.
Makes: 16 large triangles
Prep time: 30 minutes
Baking time: 15-20 minutes
Ingredients:
½ package Filo sheets
About ½ cup olive oil (or clarified butter)
For the filling:
2 cups chopped mixed herbs (I used basil, mint, dill, parsley and cilantro)
1 cup crumbled Feta cheese
2 Tbs bread crumbs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
¼ cup pine nuts
1 Tbs olive oil
1. Preheat the oven to 370F (185C). Place baking paper on a flat baking pan.
2. The filling: combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl.
3. Cut the Filo sheets in half. Tightly wrap one-half with plastic wrap and keep for future use. Cover the rest with a towel.
4. Place one sheet on a cutting board. Brush with a bit of oil and turn over. Brush on the other side and place another Filo sheet on top. Brush with oil and add one more layer. Brush with oil and cut in half with a sharp knife, so you’ll have two large stripes, each of three layers of dough.
5. Place 1 heaped tablespoon of the filling at the bottom of each strip. Fold one corner to one side, then flip sides (“flag folding”) and keep on folding this way until you end up with a triangle shape. Do the same with the rest of the dough and filling. Place the triangles on the baking sheet and brush the tops with a bit more oil.
6. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the pastries are golden brown.
WANT!
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LOL
Waiting for the new technology that will enable to send an actual food online…. 😀
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I’ll put my name on the waiting list, fur sure! ;->
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Those looks so tasty!! Cant wait to try these.
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Thanks! I hope you’ll enjoy the results. 🙂
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yum! thanks for sharing this! 🙂
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My pleasure. I’m glad you liked it. 🙂
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Reblogged this on Crackling Pork Rinds and commented:
Melt in your mouth delicious!
So a good luncheon diner up north might have pasties and calzones and muffalata (not sure how to spell it, sorry) and panzerotti (the mortadella and provolone kind) and cubanos and phos and panini. (Yes, I like it.)
So this would also be very excellent on that menu. Entirely new luncheon concept for panini anyway. Or old, whatever.
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Thanks for the tip, Chef! 🙂
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Thank you! I’m glad you’ve found it helpful. 🙂
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I get filo from the shop once in a while but using it is someone else’s turf as I could get intimidated by pastry–but now I’m bolder–thanks again! 🙂
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Glad to know. I’m sure you’ll make wonderful dishes with it. 🙂
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‘Hope so 🙂
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