Galaktoboureko (Greek Custard Pie)

Directions

• Day Before Instructions
• Remove phyllo from freezer and place in refrigerator. If you forgot to do this step the day before, take the phyllo out of the freezer and place on counter for 3-4 hours.
• Day Of Instructions
• Syrup
• In a sauce pan, mix together the sugar, water, citrus blossom water, lemon rind, and cinnamon stick.
• Bring to a boil. Simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove from heat and set aside.
• Custard Instructions
• In a large pot, add the milk, 1/2 cup of sugar, vanilla, and salt. Over medium heat, bring to a boil stirring constantly.
• Briskly whisk in the semolina flour using a steady, slow stream to add in the flour. Continue to whisk briskly for 3-4 minutes. You will see the mixture pull away from the sides of the pot after about 4 minutes. Turn off heat and set pot aside with your syrup mixture.
• Separate eggs into a large bowl for egg whites and a slightly larger bowl for egg yolks.
• Add 1/4 cup each of the sugar to the bowl with the egg whites and the bowl with the yolks.
• Using a hand blender, whip the egg whites to form a meringue. The egg whites should form stiff peaks that hold their shape when you stop blending.
• With the same hand blender, whip the yolks to become creamy, for about 4 minutes.
• Fold in 1/4 of the egg whites at a time into the yolks until completely combined.
• By this time, the milk will have cooled somewhat. You don’t want the milk mixture too hot or else it will curdle the eggs. Whisk in the egg mixture 1/4 of the mixture at a time into the milk mixture.
• Phyllo and Assembly Instructions
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Melt 1 stick (1/2 cup) of unsalted butter in a sauce pan.
• Using a pastry brush, coat the bottom and sides of a 9×13 inch baking dish.
• Unroll the phyllo dough. You want to be prepared to work quickly so the dough doesn’t dry out. Create an assembly line of the pan, butter sauce pan, dough, and custard so you can work quickly.
• You will need to butter each sheet of dough separately with the pastry brush. But you will also need to have the dough overhang on each of the four sides of your pan so you can create a cover once the custard goes in the pan. I did 6 layers of dough on the bottom.
• After you have the six buttered sheets on the bottom, add the custard. Then fold over the dough so it creates a cover.
• Then add six more layers of dough making sure to brush butter on each layer.
• Using a knife, score the dough so the pieces are cut when they go in the oven.
• Pour any remaining butter on top.
• Bake for an hour until golden brown.
• Meanwhile, you can remove the lemon rind and cinnamon stick from the syrup.
• As soon as dessert comes out of the oven, ladle the syrup onto the dessert and allow it to soak into the dessert.
• Wait at least ten minutes before serving so the custard does not ooze.
• Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.