Manitaropita me Prassa (Homemade Greek Mushroom Pie with Leeks)

One of my favourite ingredients is mushrooms but making a mushroom pie was out of the question as two out of five members of my family hate mushrooms.

My son George also loves mushrooms as much as I do and has been asking me for quite a long time to make a mushroom pie.  When we were discussing the menu for 24, 24, 24 he mentioned this again, so this time I could not refuse.  It’s not that I don’t use mushrooms at all, but I always find a way to cook something in which I can add them the last moment, so that the others will eat it as well.

I make pies quite often but as I had never made one with mushrooms, a few days before I had to test it before making it for the buffet, so when I made a chicken pie for the rest of the family, I made more phyllo and made a small one (19 cm pan) just to try it.

I sauteed the leeks first, together with garlic and spring onions and cooked them with balsamic vinegar until they were soft.   I used two kinds of mushrooms:  white portobello and white agaricus (button mushrooms).  I added fresh rosemary which matches well with mushrooms and as the mushrooms released a lot of fluids, I added some flour to absorb the juices.  Finally, I crumbled some feta, together with eggs and milk and poured it on top of the mushrooms and covered it with the other phyllo.  From the pieces of phyllo I trimmed, I made the decoration.

The verdict: This dough makes a very flaky phyllo which makes savory pies delicious. When I made the previous pie I kept a slice to try it in the evening and see how it tasted cold and if the crust would still be crispy.  Fortunately, it was perfect, so I prepared the phyllo the previous day and rolled it out and placed it between parchment paper in the refrigerator.   I also prepared the filling from the previous day and had each ingredient stored separately.  I didn’t want to prepare the whole pie from the previous day as I didn’t want the phyllo to become soggy.  So, the first thing I made on Saturday morning was to assemble the pie, which took me about ten minutes and baked it while I started cooking.

Here is a collage of the small pie I made as I did not have time to take pictures of the other one.  The ingredients given is for a 30 cm tart pan.  This pie serves 8 a a main course, served with a salad but for the buffet, I cut it into around 30 small pieces.

Kourou Phyllo

Preparation time: 20 minutes

Freezing time: 30 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 butter (250 grams)
• 1 Greek yoghurt 2% (200 grams)
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 500 grams self raising flour plus 1 or 2 more tablespoons

Directions:

1. Cut the butter into small pieces.
2. Sieve flour and salt in a large bowl.Add the butter and mix with your hand.Add yoghurt and mix until the dough comes together and forms a ball.A few more tablespoons of flour may be needed or add less yoghurt.
3. Divide the dough in two parts, one of which slightly bigger.Form into a ball and then flatten.Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for half an hour before rolling out.
4. Roll out phyllo on a non stick working surface about ½ cm thick.

Manitaropita me Prassa (Homemade Greek Mushroom Pie with Leeks), Recipe by Ivy

Makes: 1 pie – 30 cm tart pan

Preparation time:1 hour

Baking time:about 45 – 55 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 dose kourou phyllo
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 3 leeks, finely chopped
• 3 spring onions, finely chopped
• 2 clove garlic, finely chopped, divided
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 550 grams Portobello and button mushrooms, sliced
• 1 tsp butter
• 1 cup parsley, finely chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped
• 200 grams feta
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup milk

Directions:

1. Heat half of the olive oil in a sautéing pan and sautéleeks, onions and garlic until translucent.Season with salt and pepper and add the vinegar and mix. Drain and reserve the juices.
2. Heat the butter and sauté the garlic and then add mushrooms.Add 2 tablespoons of the leek juices, season with salt and pepper, add the rosemary and cook until they release all the juices.Mix for a few minutes, add the flour and mix until all the juices are absorbed.Set aside until they cool and mix in the parsley.
3. Beat the eggs and reserve a few tablespoons.
4. Preheat the oven at 180o C.
5. Roll out the biggest dough. Brush a 30 cm tart pan with olive oil and place the dough.Brush with the beaten egg.This will prevent the dough from absorbing any juices.Add the leeks and on top the mushrooms.
6. In the remaining eggs, crumble feta and add enough milk to make it creamy.
7. Spoon this mixture on top of the mushrooms.
8. Finally add the second phyllo on top and seal the two together. Decorate the pie on top with leftover pieces of dough and brush with the reserved egg.
9. Bake in a preheated oven for about 45 – 55 minutes, until golden brown.

Kopiaste and Kali Orexi!!

Tags: kourou, made with phyllo, Manitaropita, Mushrooms, pastry, pie, pites