Balkan-Style Feta Filo Pie
This recipe for feta filo pie comes from classic Bulgarian cuisine, where the pie is called banitza or pulled banitza. Freshly cooked banitsa is mouth-watering, wonderfully crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. You can make this feta pie with ready-filo pastry for it's quick and easy. However, the pie tastes more delicate and fresh if you make the pastry from scratch.
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Making homemade filo pastry 1 hour hr
Course Breakfast, Main Course, Snack
Servings 8
Calories 411.5 kcal
For the homemade filo pastry
- 700 g plain flour + 100g for kneading
- 380 ml lukewarm water
- 20 ml cooking oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup sparkling water
For the filling
- 500 g feta cheese
- 3 eggs
- 150 ml melted butter
To make the dough in a dough mixer
Sieve the flour straight into your dough mixer bowl. Add half of the water with the salt, oil and vinegar to the flour and start kneading with the mixer on a low speed. Add extra flour and water gradually while kneading with the mixer until you have a soft elastic dough. This will take roughly 15-20 minutes.
Finish kneading by hand to make sure your dough is no longer sticky. Shape the dough into a ball, place it in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
To make the dough by hand
Sieve the flour into a heaping pile onto your working surface and make a well in the middle of the flour. Pour half of the water with the oil, vinegar and add the salt in the well of flour. Whisk the liquids lightly with a fork to combine them. Start mixing small amounts of flour into the liquid until a dough is formed. Begin kneading the dough by hand. Gradually, add the rest of the water and extra flour into the dough and continue kneading the dough by hand until you have an elastic soft dough that is no longer sticking to your fingers. Shape the dough into a ball. Place the ball of dough inside a bowl, cover the bowl with a kitchen wrap and let the dough rest for 20 minutes.
Flatten the rested dough with your fist, then divide it into 6 equal pieces. Shape a ball with each piece of dough. Place the dough balls on a tray and cover with a plastic wrap. Leave the dough balls to rest for 20 minutes.
To assemble the feta pie
Preheat the oven to 170°C/330°F degrees. Brush a 32 cm round baking tray with melted butter.
Roll the first ball of dough into a round thin pastry sheet. Start pulling the ends of the pastry sheet with your fingers in all directions until you have a very thin, almost see-through, round sheet of pastry. The pastry sheet should be roughly the same size as your bakin tin.
Drizzle the feta filling lightly onto the ready pastry sheet. Fold the closest end of the pastry sheet with the feta filling inside approximately 1 cm. Start rolling the pastry sheet like a pancake, with the feta filling on the inside. Place the roll along the inside wall of the baking tray.
Repeat the same steps with the rest of the balls of dough. Assemble the pie from the outside to the centre of the baking tin.
Sprinkle soda water over the feta pie and brush the the top of the pie with a little bit of oil. Place the pie in the middle of the oven and bake for 20 minutes.
Check the feta pie after the first 10 minutes of baking. If it is getting worryingly brown on the top, cover the tray with kitchen foil. Place the foil with the shiny side down, to reflect the heat toward the pie.
When the feta pie is ready, take it out of the oven. Cover it with a tea towel and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. If you want your pie softer and not that crispy, drizzle a little bit of water over it as soon as it is out of the oven and cover with a tea towel.
Serve your feta pie with plain yoghurt on the side or with a yoghurt drink.
Nutrition facts
1 Serving 146g: Calories: 411.5 | Calories from Fat 273 g |Total Fat 30.4 g | Saturated Fat 18.4g | Cholesterol 153.2 mg | Sodium 1086.2 mg | Total Carbohydrate 23.1 g | Dietary Fibre 0.7 g | Sugars 1.7 g | Protein 11.6 g
Keyword banitsa, banitza, borek, feta filo, feta filo pie, tiropita