Pitakia Kaisarias

Pitakia Kaisarias (Pastourmadopitakia)

Small Greek phyllo pies filled with pastourma (spiced air-dried cured beef), kasseri cheese and tomato, baked until crisp and golden. A classic meze from Thessaloniki, where pastourma is a local speciality.

Prep

30 min

Cook

20 min

Total

50 min

Serves

12 pies (4-6 servings as meze)

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •6 sheets phyllo pastry, thawed if frozen, kept under a damp cloth
• •150 g (5½ oz) pastourma, peeled of its thick cemen (spiced paste) coating if very heavily coated, then thinly sliced
• •150 g (5½ oz) kasseri cheese, Gruyère or kefalotyri as substitute
• •2 medium tomatoes, firm, seeded and finely diced
• •100 g (7 tbsp) butter, melted; or Greek extra-virgin olive oil
• •1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
• •1 tbsp sesame seeds, optional, for topping

Steps

1. 1 Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. 2 Prepare the filling: cut the pastourma slices into small pieces (about 1 cm). Grate or crumble the kasseri. Dice the seeded tomato. Toss the pastourma, kasseri and tomato together in a bowl with the black pepper. Do not add salt - pastourma is already very salty.
3. 3 Lay one sheet of phyllo on a clean work surface, keeping the rest covered with a damp cloth. Brush lightly with melted butter. Lay a second sheet on top and brush again. Cut the double sheet lengthways into 3 strips, each about 8 cm (3 in) wide.
4. 4 Place a heaped tablespoon of filling at the short end of each strip, leaving a 2 cm border. Fold the corner over the filling diagonally to form a triangle, then keep folding along the strip in the same triangular pattern, as you would folding a flag.
5. 5 Tuck the final edge under the pie and place seam-side down on the prepared tray. Repeat with the remaining phyllo and filling to make about 12 pies.
6. 6 Brush the tops of the pies generously with the remaining melted butter and scatter with sesame seeds if using.
7. 7 Bake for 18-20 minutes, until the pastry is deep golden and crisp and the cheese is melted and bubbling at the edges.
8. 8 Rest for 5 minutes before serving - the filling will be very hot. Serve warm as a meze.