For a ready-made ingredient that’s widely found in mainstream markets, phyllo dough seems to produce a disproportionate amount of angst. Otherwise savvy bakers blanch at the idea of working with the delicate pastry sheets, and while it does take a gentle touch, most fears are largely overblown. It’s not as if they’ll shatter if you merely look at them wrong. The best way to overcome any phyllo anxiety is to dive right in with some exposure therapy, and I have a truly foolproof recipe to start you on the path to recovery. Portokalopita is meant to be broken in the first place.

A Break-Out Success

My original motivation for making portokalopita was to use up scraps of leftover phyllo dough from previous projects. Since I can’t possibly throw away perfectly good food, those random shards sat in the freezer for a good long time before being unearthed. Dried out beyond their ideally pliable state, there was no separating the sheet to make a flaky layered pastry. Instead, portokalopita encourages you to rip or crumble them all up, drop them into a baking pan, and smother them with a yogurt-based custard. Absolutely zero finesse is required, you can use up all your extra phyllo scraps, and there’s no way to mess it up.

Proof Of The Pudding

Thought often described as a cake, the texture is much denser and more moist, like a rich baked pudding. A heavy pour of olive oil creates body and substance, cut by the bright acidity of fresh citrus. My version skips the eggs, of course, and cuts the sugar and oil substantially. It’s traditional to make a separate orange syrup to pour on top, but a light drizzle of vegan honey does the trick for my taste buds. I would never claim my version to be remotely authentic, but I do confidently declare it to be delicious.

Continue reading “Ideas in Phyllosophy” →

What spurs you on to create new recipes? Inspiration comes in countless forms, lurking just beneath the surface everywhere you look. It could be a trip to the market that lights a spark, or a great meal at a new restaurant. Even something as innocuous as watching tv or chatting with a friend might start the wheels turning. Some recipes, however, have decidedly less grand beginnings. Born not in some great flash of genius, but by sheer necessity, the results are by no means any less spectacular. Sometimes it just comes down to what’s already in the fridge.

Adding a single box of phyllo to a recent coop order seemed like a reasonable impulse buy to complete the case- A least until it arrived, and needed somewhere to stay. Freezer stuffed to bursting, there was no choice but to let it thaw out in the fridge, with still no destination in mind. With time ticking and now fridge space dwindling, that phyllo had to go, and not straight into the trash! At times like this, the great interweb is a true godsend.

Still waffling between sweet and savory recipes, it was the idea of Susan‘s Spinach and Artichoke Pie that sealed the deal. Tweaking the seasonings and switching out spinach for kale, it was an impressive outcome for the phyllo that had no clear purpose. Instead of making one giant pie, it seemed more fitting to break the dish up into individual wraps; less messy to serve and easier to store. Shatteringly crisp and flaky, that phyllo is truly what makes the final bundle of gently spiced greens and goodies so compelling. Only when my parcels had finished baking did I realize the strange cultural mash-up at play. Indeed, what emerged from the oven turned out to be glorified Greek burritos.

Yield: Makes About 5 Large Burritos

Greek Burritos

Name: Greek Burritos
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 5
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients: 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil; 1 Medium Yellow Onion, Diced; 2 Cloves Garlic, Finely Minced; 12 Ounces Frozen Chopped Kale; 1 Pound Extra-Firm Tofu, Thoroughly Drained; 1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast; 1 Teaspoon Salt, or to Taste; 1 1/2 Teaspoons Dried Dill; 1 1/2 Teaspoons Dried Oregano; 2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice; 3 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Oil-Cured Olives; 1/8 Teaspoon Dried Red Pepper Flakes; 1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cumin; 1/4 Teaspoon Ground Coriander; 1 12-Ounce Bag Frozen Artichoke Hearts, Thawed and Quartered; 1 Package Phyllo Dough, Thawed; Olive Oil in Spray Bottle

Get all the best bites of spanakopita in one tidy hand-held package. Wrap up savory spinach in phyllo dough like a burrito for a delightful Greek-inspired meal.

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 Medium Yellow Onion, Diced
2 Cloves Garlic, Finely Minced
12 Ounces Frozen Chopped Kale
1 Pound Extra-Firm Tofu, Thoroughly Drained
1/4 Cup Nutritional Yeast
1 Teaspoon Salt, or to Taste
1 1/2 Teaspoons Dried Dill
1 1/2 Teaspoons Dried Oregano
2 Tablespoons Lemon Juice
3 Tablespoons Finely Chopped Oil-Cured Olives
1/8 Teaspoon Dried Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 Teaspoon Ground Cumin
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Coriander
1 12-Ounce Bag Frozen Artichoke Hearts, Thawed and Quartered
1 Package Phyllo Dough, Thawed
Olive Oil in Spray Bottle

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and line two baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper; Set aside.
Begin heating the oil in a medium or large soup pot over moderate heat. You want a vessel with high sides that can accommodate a good amount of food, so don’t hesitate to spring for one size bigger than you think is appropriate. It’s not a bad thing if it ends up being too spacious either. Add in the onions and garlic, and saute for 10 – 12 minutes until fragrant, softened, and beginning to take on a golden hue.
Toss in the frozen kale, stir well, and let it thaw as it mingles with the hot onions. Turn off the heat as soon as the leaves are no longer icy.
Meanwhile, crumble your tofu into a large bowl and toss with the nutritional yeast, salt, dill, oregano, lemon juice, olives, pepper, cumin, and coriander. Once evenly seasoned, stir the tofu mixture into the hot onions and kale until well incorporated.
Finally, introduce the artichokes, and mix just to distribute evenly throughout the filling. The mixture should be warm to the touch but not hot at this point.
To assemble your burritos, first lay out one sheet of phyllo on an immaculate flat surface, and lightly spritz with olive oil. Carefully top that with another sheet, lining up the edges to the best of your ability, and spritz oil on top of that. Repeat twice more for a total of 4 stacked full rectangle sheets.
Gently distribute about 1 cup of the filling vertically, about 1 inch in from the left edge, top, and bottom. Now, as if it were a tortilla, fold the top and bottom edges over the filling, and roll, starting from the left side, until you have one smooth cylinder resting on the open end of the dough.
Gingerly lift the wrap and place it on one of the baking sheets, and finally spritz the top once more with oil. Repeat for the remaining dough and filling, placing no more than three burritos on each sheet.
Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, rotating the sheets about halfway through if necessary, until golden brown all over. Serve immediately while hot.

Notes

If you’re cooking for a smaller crowd, you can keep any leftover filling and phyllo separate, assembling and baking individual burritos when desired.

Recommended Products

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

Serving Size:

1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 331Total Fat: 23gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 19gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 524mgCarbohydrates: 22gFiber: 9gSugar: 3gProtein: 16g

All nutritional information presented within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information on BitterSweetBlog.com should only be used as a general guideline. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information will be completely accurate. Even though I try to provide accurate nutritional information to the best of my ability, these figures should still be considered estimations.