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Orange and lemon galaktoboureko

Australian Gourmet Traveller Greek pastry recipe for orange and lemon galaktoboureko.

By Lisa Featherby
  • 30 mins preparation
  • 1 hr cooking plus cooling
  • Serves 16
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Orange and lemon galaktoboureko
Galaktoboureko is found in all good Greek sweet shops. It consists of layers of filo pastry filled with custard and baked then drenched with syrup. If you like, you can set the custard in the fridge, then cut it into portions and wrap them in filo to make individual parcels.

Ingredients

  • 375 gm filo (1 packet)
  • 200 gm butter, melted
  • 800 ml milk
  • 4 eggs
  • 6 egg yolks
  • 110 gm (½ cup) caster sugar
  • 90 gm fine semolina
Vanilla and citrus syrup
  • 400 gm raw caster sugar
  • 1 vanilla bean, split
  • Rind of 1 orange and 1 lemon, removed with a peeler, cut into julienne
  • 2 tbsp orange juice

Method

Main
  • 1
    Preheat oven to 190C. Lay filo sheets flat and cover with a damp tea towel. Reserve 50gm melted butter and set aside. Working with one piece of filo at a time, and keeping remaining filo covered, brush a filo sheet with melted butter and cover base and sides of half a buttered shallow 25cm x 30cm tin, allowing filo to hang over edges. Brush another filo sheet with butter and line base and sides of remaining half of tin, allowing filo to hang over edges. Repeat until you have used half the filo to line the tin, then set aside.
  • 2
    Bring milk to the boil over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk eggs, yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl, add milk and whisk to combine, then return to pan. Gradually whisk in semolina and reserved melted butter and whisk continuously over medium heat until thickened (5-10 minutes). Cool slightly, then pour into prepared tin, fold in overhanging edges of filo and refrigerate until cooled.
  • 3
    Meanwhile, for vanilla and citrus syrup, combine sugar, vanilla, rinds and 200ml water in a saucepan, bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve sugar, then add orange juice and set aside.
  • 4
    Working with one filo sheet at a time, brush remaining filo with melted butter and layer sheets on top of each other until all filo is used. Place prepared filo on top of semolina mixture, press to seal and trim edges with a knife. Score top of filo to the desired serving sizes, then bake until starting to turn golden (15 minutes). Decrease oven to 160C and cook until golden and starting to puff (30 minutes). Pour vanilla and citrus syrup over hot galaktoboureko and cool to room temperature. Galaktoboureko is best made on day of serving.