Traditional Greek recipes: Galaktoboureko (semolina custard pie)

Niki Louca from My Greek Kitchen shares her favourite recipe for galatoboureko (semolina custard pie) with The Greek Herald. You can follow her on Instagram @mygreekkitchen for more!

Ingredients:

• 1 packet Antoniou filo pastry
• oil for brushing
• 1 ¼ cup semolina
• ½ cup sugar
• 2lt full cream milk
• 5 eggs lightly beaten
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Syrup:

• 3 cups sugar
• 3 cups water
• 1 piece of orange peel
• 1 cinnamon stick broken up
• 3-4 cloves

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 150C.
2. Prepare the syrup first.  Add all your ingredients together and bring to the boil.  Reduce the heat and gently simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Cool your syrup.
4. In a medium sized pan, over medium heat, add the milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla, butter and in a steady steam the semolina.  Stir constantly until thickened.
5. Once thickened, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly till you prepare the filo pastry.
6. Using an ovenproof dish, brush the base of dish with a little oil.  Take a filo pastry sheet and brush it with a little oil.  Place another sheet on top of that one and repeat the process 2 more times (in total you should have 4 sheets). 
7. Take the 4 oiled sheets and place them on the base of dish.  You should have excess over hanging the dish.  Leave them as they are, as they will become your lid.
8. Repeat step 7, but once done lay the filo pastry on the other side of dish, so the excess is over hanging on the other side.
9. Take one more filo sheet, oil it and fold it in half.  Place this one on the top end of your dish and again, allow excess to overhang.  Repeat process with the bottom end of the dish.
10.  Pour your cooled custard into the dish and even out.  Take the excess filo at the top of the dish and fold in inwards.  Do the same for the bottom end.  Now fold in one side of the excess filo sheets and then the other.  You should have created an envelope as such, where all sides are secured and the custard is in the middle.
11.  Brush the top layer of filo with oil.  Take a sharp knife and score the custard into diamond shapes.
12. Bake in a pre heated oven 150C for about 30-40 minutes or until golden brown.
13. Once cooked, take it out of the oven and immediately pour 2/3rds of the cold syrup over it.  Allow it to be absorbed and top up as required.  The custard should not sit in a puddle of syrup – this will make it too sweet.  Top up only if the base of dish is not “wet”.  Remove the cinnamon sticks, orange peel and cloves from syrup.

Niki Louca runs cooking classes in Melbourne. For more or to book classes visit My Greek Kitchen at www.mygreekkitchen.com.au or Instagram @mygreekkitchen. You can email Niki at: niki@mygreekkitchen.com.au.