Cheese Boureg

Boureg/burek/bourek/borek - so many different ways to spell this.  Any way you spell it, it tastes delicious.  Said to be of Anatolian/Assyrian origins, you can find this recipe in many countries of the world.  Clearly it is an ancient, well-loved and oft-made dish.  Basically it is a pastry filled and baked with meat or cheese or whatever you fancy.  Here I have chosen to use a cheese filling encased in a phyllo pastry - no, I didn't make my own pastry you funny people:-)  

I have already blogged about the boureg/pie I made using the recipe from Nawal Nasrallah's book Delights from the Garden of Eden.  For this dish, I have taken her recipe for a cheese filling and the method from Margaret Fulton's book Encyclopedia of Food and Cookery.  I emailed Nawal about the cheese filling just to make sure I had it right, and she confirmed that I did indeed have the proportions and kinds of cheese correct.  (The recipe doesn't give the full details so I wanted to be sure.)  And since I can't readily buy the Kurdish cheese necessary, we make do:-)

delicious, salty and flaky

Recipe adapted by Sherry's Pickings:


ingredients:


125g. of hard fetta, grated - I used Greek-style

125g. of hard mozzarella, grated - not the soft stuff in balls

125g. Pecorino Romano or similar - I used Grano Padano

1½ egg whites (60g.), lightly beaten

1/2 tsp black pepper, or to taste

1 big bunch of parsley, chopped  

3 tbs fresh dill, finely chopped 

50g. walnuts, chopped

60g. butter, melted

6-8 sheets of phyllo pastry, thawed overnight in the fridge

1-2 tbs sesame seeds for the top (optional)



Method:


Place all the ingredients for the filling into a mixing bowl, and mix together well

Melt the butter and lightly grease a lamington tray (30 x 20 x 3cm.) or similar-sized baking tray 

Take 3-4 sheets of the phyllo, and layer them in the tray, buttering each one in between

Then place the filling evenly over the phyllo

And layer another 3-4 sheets over the filling, buttering each one

Press it neatly around the edges and butter generously over the top

Sprinkle on the sesame seeds if using

Bake at 180C/350F for about 20-25 minutes, till wondrously golden and crunchy

Serve with salad or veg. while warm from the oven, or slice up and hand around at parties



Notes:


I made one and a half times the quantity of filling that Nawal gives, as I wanted a larger amount of filling, as per the method given by Margaret Fulton - oh, and I added some walnuts

Luckily I had some frozen egg whites, so I measured out 60g. worth - the average egg white being 40g.  Use a whole egg if you can't be bothered separating (and keeping) the yolk

The baking tin is approx 12 x 8 inches, for any US readers; you guys really need to go metric:-)

gather your ingredients

mix the filling ingredients together 

place the filling evenly over the buttered layers of phyllo 

whack on the other layers and butter generously

bake @ 180C for about 20-25 mins.

cheesy artwork by sherry's pickings