Ingredients
15 sheets Antoniou Fillo Pastry
750ml full cream milk
150g caster sugar
1 cinnamon quill
1 vanilla bean, split in the centre with the seeds scraped out
120g fine semolina
25g butter
150g melted butter (for brushing the Fillo)
2 eggs, lightly beaten
Icing sugar
Ground cinnamon
Method
Before you begin this Filo Pastry recipe, take your fresh Filo Pastry out of the fridge to bring it up to room temperature in its packaging.
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius and line a baking tray with baking paper.
Combine the milk, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla bean and seeds in a saucepan over a medium heat.
Allow the mixture to come to a boil and then add the semolina, whisking continuously until the mixture has thickened. Whisk in the 25g of butter, remove from the stovetop and set aside. Once the custard has cooled to room temperature, remove the vanilla bean and cinnamon stick and whisk in the beaten eggs. Set aside again.
Take one sheet of Filo Pastry and lay it out on a clean bench, with the longer side of the Pastry facing you, brush with butter. Repeat with four more sheets of Pastry, stacking them on top of each other. Place 5 tablespoons of the custard into the centre of the Fillo sheets. Even it out with a knife ensuring it measure 20cm x 15 cm.
Fold the longer edges of the Fillo over the custard and brush with more butter. Fold over the shorter edges to meet in the middle to make a small package or “envelope” and brush with more butter. Lay the bougatsa seam side down on the baking tray and brush with butter.
Repeat until you make 2 more parcels with the remaining custard and Fillo sheets.
Bake in the oven for 35-40 minutes, or until golden. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before cutting into even squares. Dust with icing sugar and ground cinnamon.
