August 28, 2007

Help! Bougatsa!


















Bougatsa is a sweet Greek pastry, made of phyllo dough wrapped around a nice custard-y interior and sprinkled with cinnamon and powdered sugar. It is one of my favorite foods on earth, and I'm planning on writing on it soon, but first I'd like to make it myself! Recipes are hard to come by- I've found a few on the internet, but they vary widely and most seem like they wouldn't produce the authentic item. So I'm asking for help: Does anyone have a recipe for bougatsa? Send it my way, and I'll share some with you (in spirit, anyways). Thanks!

Note: the bougatsa pictured above wasn't very good...but it was the only picture I had!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

BOUGATSA is a territorial delight of the northern Greece province of Macedonia. The favorite is not made in a 3 layer item baked and cut in smaller sections. The best I have tasted were in Kavala and Saloniki, while the worst were in Athens.
It is made by having a moderately stiff sweetened fruit, cheese, or spiced minced sauteed beef filling that is spooned into the center of a 8 to 10 inch square of three layers of phyllo. The four tips ar then pulled together over the center and twisted to seal them together (note the phyllos must bee kept very moiste). It is then baked in a moderate oven until it starts to brown but not crisp. Typically it must be eaten with a fork and knife, not as a fast food while walking about. Only prepared in the morning and sold as a breakfast or brunch item. If it sits too long it becomes crispy dry or soggy depending on its storage condition, always disdained by its afficionades.