Greek Custard Dessert Recipe

Ingredients

For Phyllo:

2 x 250 gr. Phyllo Pastry
85 gr. Butter or Margarine

For Custard Filling:

40 gr. Butter or Margarine
1 lt. fresh Milk
5 Eggs
150 gr. fine Semolina
400 gr. Sugar
15 gr. Vanilla essence

For Syrup:

700 gr. Sugar
350 ml. Water
1 tsp. lemon juice + 1 pc. lemon rind
To sprinkle on top:
2 tsp. cinnamon powder (optional but recommended)

Instruction

Custard:

1. Start by pouring the milk in a saucepan over low heat.
2. Slowly boil the milk. Stir regularly to prevent milk from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
3. Slowly add vanilla essence & 400 gr. Sugar. Then throw in 40 gr. butter and let it slowly melt & blend w/milk mixture.
4. After about 10′ the milk starts to boil. Continue stirring!
5. Then add the semolina and whisk constantly for 3′-4′ until the mix becomes thick & creamy! You’ll know custard filling is ready when it bubbles & the whisk leaves streaks on the surface.
6. Then turn off the heat & let custard cool down.

Phyllo sheets:

1. Melt 85 gr. butter in microwave for 2′ @600W.
2. Open the phyllo sheets on a flat surface.
3. Use 1 pack for bottom & 1 for top (each 250 gr. pack contains 12 small sheets).
4. W/a brush spread some of the melted butter on a baking tray 23×35 cm. Arrange the first 2 phyllo sheets on the bottom.
5. Sprinkle some melted butter.
6. Then place 2 more sheets and sprinkle some more butter on top.
7. Continue with the rest of the 1st pack of phyllo sheets.

TIP: Phyllo pastry tends to dry easily. Cover the phyllo sheets you are not using with a damp tea towel!

When custard has cooled down and just before you pour it in the baking tray, whisk 5 eggs and fold them in the custard. Blend them well!!

TIP: If custard is not used immediately, you need to stir occasionally to keep it from forming a skin on top.

Now, tip all of the custard in the tray, smoothing its surface with a spoon. Then repeat the procedure by brushing butter in every double layer for the top sheets. In total I made 6 (double sheet) layers at the bottom & 6 (double sheet) layers at the top!

TIP: To avoid breaking the phyllo sheets, you can just sprinkle the butter on top.
When only 2 phyllo sheets are left, cover Galaktoboureko w/them & drizzle rest of butter on top. Then w/a knife or the brush tuck the loose edges inwards to seal the sweet. Brush a bit of butter around the ends. Scar the top of Galaktoboureko w/a sharp knife making smaller rectangles. With some kitchen paper, clean the sides of the tray for leftover butter. Now the Custard Dessert is finally ready to be baked ?.
TIP: Before baking, wet your hand & sprinkle some water on top of the phyllo sheets. This will prevent the pie from rising too high!
TIP: At this point if you want to prepare it ahead, Galaktoboureko can be covered and be preserved in the freezer for up to 1 month. Defrost for at least 6 hours before baking it.
In a preheated oven Fan @180℃, bake Galaktoboureko for 1h-1h15′ or till it becomes golden brown all around and crunchy!
While waiting for Galaktoboureko to be baked, make the syrup.

Syrup:

1. In a saucepan over low heat, combine 700 gr. sugar and 350 ml. water.
2. Add lemon juice and rind. Bring to a boil and constantly stir gently until syrup becomes clear.
3. Let the syrup boil for 5′ more, gently stirring it every minute.
4. Then turn off the heat & let the syrup cool down.
5. TIP: Syrup must be room temp. when you pour it over the HOT Galaktoboureko!!
   When Galaktoboureko is ready, remove from the oven. Set it on a rack and immediately pour the cold syrup over it. You can hear the phyllo sheets sizzle ?
   Let it stand uncovered for some time to cool down before you serve it. Optionally you can sprinkle cinnamon powder on top.