Bougatsa

Bougatsa (Semolina custard pastry)

 Ingredients

phyllo dough: 1 packet (450 g)

milk: 4 cups

butter: ¼ cup, for the custard and 2/3 cup (melted) for the phyllo dough

fine semolina: 2/3 cup

eggs: 2 plus 2 extra yolks

sugar: 2/3 cup

vanilla powder: 1tsp or liquid 

icing sugar, to dust (optional) cinnamon for dusting (optional)

Method 

Boil the milk. Melt the butter in a saucepan and brown the semolina stirring constantly for 1 minuet. Gradually pour in the hot milk whisking briskly and bring to a simmer while stirring all the time until the custard thickens. Remove from heat and allow the custard to cool stirring occasionally to keep it from forming a skin on top.

Beat the eggs and the egg yolks with the sugar and the vanilla in a mixer and incorporate the mixture into the semolina custard. Place a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the custard, to prevent a skin forming, and set aside.

Lay half of the phyllo sheets onto a large lightly buttered baking tray brushing butter in between the layers. Spread the custard on and top with the rest of the phyllo sheets brushed with butter in between.

Bake in a pre-heated oven at 200° C for approximately 35΄ until golden brown. Serve hot and, if desired, dust with plenty of icing sugar and a dash of cinnamon. 

Or make them in depended  served and make them in to triangle shapes 

(Backup) Stuffed Rolled Pork with lemon roast herb potatoes

Fay’s rolled pork stuffed with mixed peppers, feta cheese, mustard, continental pork sausage, mozzarella cheese. In bed of lemon mustard oregano potatoes. Kali orexi!

Stuffed rolled pork with lemon roast potatoes 

Ingredients 

2kg belly pork butterflied 

3-4 of Any good quality sausage ( I used spiced pork sausage)

1 Red pepper

1 yellow pepper 

3Table spoons mustard of your choice

10 Tiny tomatoes

200g Greek  feta

1/2 cup of olive oil

1 cup of any yellow grated cheese 

1 Tsp of dry oregano

1 Tsp of dry Thyme 

1kg of potatoes 

2 Lemons

1 cup of water or chicken broth

Salt 

Pepper 

Al Foil

 Method 

Preparing the pork Belly 

Wash and dry with a paper towel the Belly pork. I like to keep the skin on as it makes it nicer. I score it with a very sharp knife or a blade and rub it with some salt then Turn the meat over and place some plastic wrap over it and with a meat tenderiser smooth the belly pork so it can be even.

Rub some of the mustard all over the inside of the pork and Salt and pepper it on both sides and rub some of the oregano and Thyme drizzle some of the olive oil.

Preparing the stuffing 

Wash and slice the peppers in to strips 

Wash dry and cut sausages also in strips

Slice the Feta in long strips 

Cut the tiny tomatoes in half and place all the stuffing on top of the already spiced belly pork and cover with grated yellow cheese sprinkle some of the herbs on top and start rolling the pork belly slowly until it’s all rolled up. Secure with tooth picks so it stays until you use the cooking string to tie and securing the pork belly roll or use butchers net! 

Preparing the roasted lemon potatoes 

Wash and peel the potatoes and slice in to quarter length ways. Place them in the tray with 1 table spoon of the mustard olive oil lemon juice salt pepper oregano and Thyme 

Preparing the final cooking method 

 Place the pork belly roll skin up in a try  rub it with some olive oil and some salt and bake in a hot oven 220* for about half hour or until the pork skin has taken a nice colour then add the spiced potatoes with a cup of water or broth covering the tray with Al foil but cutting and exposing the pork so that it can brown at 180* for about 2 hours checking in case it over cooks! 

When done cover with some Al foil and let meat stand to adsorb it’s juices so it can be tender and juicy! 

Enjoy!

Orange syrup cake

 ingredients

* 450 g philo pastry

* 250 g  canola oil

* 250. g. sugar

* 2 tsp vanilla

* zest of 2 oranges

* 150 g orange jam with chunks

* 5 eggs 

* 500 g yoghurt

* 200 g cream (or sour milk or milk with 2 lemon juice)

* 20 g baking powder

* For the syrup

* 600 g sugar

* 500 g water

* 1 cinnamon stick

* 1 cup orange juice and zest

* 100 g orange jam

 Method 

Bake the orange pie in a 40 × 26cm shallow baking dish, which is well greased. Preheat the oven to 160 degrees C in the air or 180 degrees to the resistances.

We cut philo in to strips and loosen the philo as to make thick ribbons and to help them dry for 10 minutes. Cut it into small pieces with a knife or with your hands.

Put in a bowl the oil, sugar, vanilla, zest, jam, eggs, cream and yogurt. Wipe them with wire to become a nice batter. If you have time, leave the sugar for a little while in the liquids. This will melt more correctly and have a more beautiful caramel in baking. Finally, we add baking pawder. Stir.

Pour the broken dried leaves, just a little each time in the liquid mixture, making sure all the philo pieces are well wet in the batter. This is necessary because otherwise the sheets stick together to form a ball, so they do not cook evenly.

We continue to add a few scraps of the philo strips until they all become a mass like the cake porridge without forming balls of glued leaves. But if this happens with the fork we dissolve them. Allow the mixture to stand for 10 minutes,to allow the philo to absorb the batter.

Empty in thin layer and bake for about 30 minutes, stabilize and slightly brown the surface, making a light crust. As it's still hot, we slowly pour the cold syrup into the Ct he hot cake. Allow to cool well so that it will absorb the syrup.

Like all syrupy desserts, let it cool completely until  all of the syrup was absorbed inside and then cut.

How to make the syrup for the orange pie

Boil sugar, water and cinnamon for 4 minutes. Add juice and zest and jam and let cool. Pour the hot orange sauce with the cold syrup. Serve with ice cream and nuts.

Fay's pasteli Sesame bars

3 cups of sesame seeds 

1 cup of chopped peanuts or any other nuts of your choice

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/3 Cup raw sugar

1/3 cup of water 

1/3 of Rice malt syrup or honey

Large pinch of salt 

Some baking paper 

Spray oil

Rolling pin 

Method

Place in a non stick frypan the sesame seeds and brown continually and being carful not to burn it . Once done empty it in a bowl and do the same with the nuts of your choice stirring until they are also browned place them with the sesame seeds and mix them well let them cool. 

Place in the same nonstick frypan the sugars the Rice malt syrup or the honey ( I like to use the Rice malt Syrup as it will make them nice and shiny but a good quality honey is just as good) the salt and the water and mix them all together and cook in a moderate heat for about 5 minutes or until the mixture has thickens then add the sesame seeds and nuts and mix well until all of the sesame seeds and nuts are well coated. 

Cut a large piece  of baking paper enough to fold over and spray it with some oil

Then empty the mix on to the baking paper and fold over with the same piece then with the rolling pin roll out to desired thickness and cut to in to pieces before it sets.

Let it cool completely and place in a air tight container it never last more then a few days in my house hold they all love it! 

Sfakianopites

For lovers of Cretan cuisine and beyond.

What we need:

For the dough

1/2 pound of flour

1/4 cup raki or ouzo 

2 tablespoons oil

1 cup water

pinch of salt

For the filling

Cream cheese 1/2

Method

Mix the flour with the oil to lubricate the flour well.

Add the remaining ingredients.

Divide the dough into 10 balls.

Allow the dough to mature.

After about half an hour to get every ball, open little hands, put a little cream cheese in the center and close it like a pouch.

Put us to the bench with the closed side to kato.To press lightly with the palm of us over with a rolling pin to roll out our size pasta dish.

Put a little oil in a pan and fry each one by one sfakianopites. If the leaves have opened -meaning bubbles that have kept air-through with a toothpick to tweak to leave the air.

When they are fried drizzle with honey or salty Parmesan.

Fay's spanakorizo (Rice with Spinach)

 Ingredients

1 kg spinach (cleaned, washed and coarsely chopped)

4 leeks (white part cut into washers)

6 green onions (chopped)

1 large onion (chopped)

1/2 bunch dill (chopped)

2 handfuls of long grain rice 

olive oil

salt - black pepper

Fresh juice of 1 lemon

Method

Cover the bottom of a casserole with olive oil and saute onions, fresh and dried with leeks.

Sauté until transparent  add the spinach, stir and cover to wilt. The spinach will pull fluids so do not add water immediately. 

After the wilted spinach, add the dill, rice, 2 cups water, salt and pepper.

Boil for 10 minutes more, stirring frequently to avoid sticking the rice. Then withdraw the food from the heat, sprinkle with the lemon juice and leave it covered until all fluids have been absorbed 

Serve with fresh crusty bread and feta cheese!