It brings our entire family an incredible amount of joy to see our pastry being used to create delicious things for very important causes. The Cottage Kitchen is an exemplary example of the wonderful things that can be achieved when like-minded people come together to serve their community. They prepare and deliver thousands of meals each year to the sick, the vulnerable and the elderly in their local Sydney community. It is an important service delivered by the volunteers of The Greek Orthodox Parish and Community of Burwood and District Saint Nectarios, and other volunteers. The Cottage Kitchen is funded through community donations, government and corporate grants, and fundraising by the Philoptochos. It is an honour for us to shed some light on the amazing work that this incredible team does.
The Cottage Kitchen makes many delicious things. Christina’s Galaktoboureko has become famous amongst the local community, and having now had the privilege of tasting it, we all agree that it is one of the best Galaktoboureko’s we have ever eaten! Christina has been kind enough to share the recipe with us for you all to enjoy.
Ingredients
Makes a very large tray of 24 serves
2 x 375g Antoniou Fillo Pastry
300g unsalted butter, melted
For the syrup
500ml water
700g sugar
1 cinnamon quill
one whole lemon, cut into pieces
25g vanillin sugar (or 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste)
For the custard
6 whole eggs
3 egg yolks
50g vanillin sugar (or two tabelspoons vanilla bean paste)
3 litres milk
300g sugar
300g fine semolina
zest of one lemon
150g cold butter
Method
Before you begin this Fillo Pastry recipe, take your Filo Pastry out of the fridge to bring it up to room temperature in its packaging.
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
To make the syrup
Place all the syrup ingredients in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Boil for 5 minutes, then remove from the heat. Allow to cool completely then discard the lemon pieces and cinnamon quill.
To make the Custard
In a large bowl, beat the 6 eggs and 3 egg yolks until well combined. Add the vanillin sugar and half a litre of the milk. Whisk well to combine. Set aside.
Heat the remaining 2.5 litres of the milk in a large saucepan over medium to high. Add the sugar and whisk well too combine. Add the semolina and whisk well to combine. Add the lemon zest and whisk constantly until the custard thickens. Whisk in the butter then remove from the heat. Add the contents of the separate bowl into the custard and whisk until well combined.
To assemble the Galaktoboureko
Butter the baking tray with butter. Lay one packet of the Fillo Pastry sheets on the bottom of the tray, brushing each sheet with butter and ensuring each sheet is moved slightly to cover the entire base, with some of the sheets hanging over the sides. Pour the custard over the pastry and using a spatula, even it out. Fold the overhanging pastry over the custard and brush with butter. Top the custard with the remianing packet of Fillo Pastry sheets, buttering each sheet.
Cut through the top layer of the Galaktoboureko with a sharp knife to create 24 pieces. Bake for 60 minutes, or until the pastry turns a golden brown. Remove from the oven and immeditaely pour the cooled syrup over the hot Galaktoboureko and allow to sit for at least an hour before serving.
Learn how to make Christina’s Galaktoboureko