Zekes Tyropitas Recipes

TIROPITA

Steps:

• Melt 6 tablespoons butter in small saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Gradually pour in the milk, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon. Add the salt and nutmeg, stirring occasionally, until mixture is bubbly and thickened, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Mash the feta cheese with a fork in a bowl and stir in the grated kefalotiri, beaten eggs, and parsley. Pour in the hot white sauce and mix well.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13-inch baking dish.
• Line the buttered baking dish with a sheet of phyllo dough and brush it with melted butter; keep the remaining phyllo sheets covered with plastic wrap while you work. Repeat with half of the phyllo sheets, brushing each sheet with butter, and letting them come up the sides of the baking dish. Pour in the cheese filling.
• Lay the remaining pastry sheets on top of the filling, brushing each with butter. Brush the top of the last sheet with butter and, with a sharp knife, score the top sheets into strips about 3 inches wide from one end of the baking dish to the other.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the pastry is golden brown and crisp, about 45 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes, then cut into squares and serve hot.

ZEKE'S TYROPITAS

Steps:

• Make the filling:
• Fold together the cheeses, eggs, parsley, and salt and pepper in a small bowl.
• Assemble the tyropitas:
• For every 6 turnovers, you should use 2 layers of phyllo, liberally brushing each layer with melted butter. To assemble, start at the shorter end of the phyllo rectangle and cut into 6 even strips. Beginning at the far left lower corner of each strip, place 1/2 teaspoon of filling, and like folding an American flag, begin making right-angle turns until you have reached the end of the strip and you have a triangle-shaped pastry. Brush the turnovers liberally with butter and place them on wax paper. When all the triangles have been made, place them between layers of wax paper in a box or snap-top container and freeze. They can also be baked and eaten right away.
• Preheat your oven to 400°F, and bake the pastries for 12 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet (they already have enough butter). If they have been frozen they can go directly from the freezer to the oven for 20 minutes. They will be a pale golden color and very hot inside, so be careful with the first bite!
• Phyllo Dough
• Working with phyllo dough can be a frustrating experience if you ignore one important rule: Always defrost the dough slowly, overnight in your refrigerator. If you try to rush it you will lose half a box to sticky layers. Always keep the phyllo covered with a dry kitchen towel while working with it and brush layers liberally with melted butter.