Greek Dessert – Galaktoboureko

Galaktoboureko is Greek dessert combining custard and purchased phyllo dough into a delicious creation!

Greek Dessert – Galaktoboureko

One of my favorite things about going into small town bakeries, like the one near my cabin, is seeing how the baked goods reflect the heritage of the people that have settled in that area.  If you find kolackies, you know you have Polish heritage. If you find kringles, you have Scandinavian heritage, and so forth. Desserts just have a way of tying us to our heritage. It’s probably because they are something our Mom or Grandmother made for us. I am sure that Galaktoboureko is that kind of dessert for those of Greek decent.

Carol and Mike were the couple that treated us to Galaktoboureko at our Greek-themed Gourmet gathering. In true tradition, this dessert featured the familiar Greek staple, phyllo pastry. You may be familiar with phyllo if you’ve ever enjoyed baklava, another great Greek dessert. Galaktoboureko adds a homey custard made with semolina flour, between top and bottom layers of butter brushed phyllo. It’s then baked and cooled to room temperature before serving.

When this was served for our Greek Feast, we needed a little extra pizzazz for the photo. Our clever hostess Lynda, jumped in and added a sprig of mint and a drizzle of balsamic glaze drizzle. Very pretty! The glaze also added a lovely flavor to the baked custard as well. If you can’t find a balsamic glaze it’s very easy to make. Just reduce balsamic wine vinegar slowly until it reaches a syrupy consistency. Voila, balsamic glaze!

Greek Dessert – Galaktoboureko

Classic Greek dessert with delicious custard topped and layers of phyllo baked to perfection and served at room temperature.

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Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Greek

Keyword: custard, phyllo

Prep Time: 45 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 12

Ingredients

• 6 cups whole milk
• 1 cup semolina flour
• 3 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup butter melted
• 12 sheets phyllo dough
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar

Instructions

• Pour milk into a large saucepan and bring to boil over medium heat. In a medium bowl, whisk together the semolina, cornstarch, 1 cup sugar and salt so there are no cornstarch clumps. When milk comes to a boil, gradually add the semolina mixture, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon. Cook stirring constantly until the mixture thickens and comes to a full boil. Remove from the heat, and set aside. Keep warm.
• In a large bowl, beat eggs with an electric mixer at high speed. Add 1/2 cup sugar, and whip until thick and pale, about 10 minutes. Stir in vanilla.
• Fold the whipped eggs into the hot semolina mixture. Partially cover the pan and set aside to cool.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Butter a 9 x 13 inch baking dish and layer 7 sheets of phyllo into the pan, brushing each one with butter as you lay it in. Pour the custard into the pan over the phyllo, and cover with the remaining 5 sheets of phyllo, brushing each sheet with butter as you lay it down.
• Bake for 40-45 minutes in preheated oven, until the top crust is crisp and the custard filling has set. In a small pan, stir together the remaining cup of sugar and water. Bring to a boil. When the Galaktobourkeo comes out of the oven, spoon the hot sugar syrup over the top, particularly the edges. Cool completely before cutting and serving. Store in the refrigerator.

Notes

Adapted from Allrecipes.