This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations to the winners: Lori A., Teri G., and Betty P.
I love dairy. And I love carbs.
And oh my goodness, I love dairy and carbs together.
Which is why when I lived in Israel, my absolute favorite indulgence was a cheese bourekas from Angel Bakery.
It’s been five years since I lived in Israel – and I have yet to experience that same deliciousness. But this recipe, from the new cookbook, Jewish Traditional Cooking by Ruth Joseph, looks like it might just do the trick.
And wouldn’t it be perfect for Shavuot?!
The Perfect Bourekas
Makes about 40 bourekas
Ingredients
2 16-oz packs of phyllo dough
2–3 tablespoons olive oil, for brushing
1 egg, to glaze
sesame or poppy seeds, to sprinkle
For the cheese filling
4 oz (1 cup) soft white cheese, such as ricotta, mozzarella, or feta
8 oz stronger cheese, such as Gouda or pecorino
1 large egg
2 tablespoons natural yogurt
salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the potato filling
1 cup mashed potato
1⁄2 cup fresh dill, finely chopped
1⁄2 cup fresh flat-leaf parsely, finely chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the spinach filling
2 lb spinach
2 eggs
11⁄2 cups Emmental, Gouda, or mozzarella, grated
salt and freshly ground black pepper
finely grated nutmeg
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Ensure that the dough is defrosted and ready to use.
First prepare the fillings. Grate or chop the cheeses for the cheese filling and combine with the egg, yogurt, and seasoning in a bowl. Set aside. Season the mashed potato with the herbs and salt and pepper, and set aside. To make the spinach filling, wash the spinach and wilt in a large pan over medium heat. Drain in a colander and squeeze out all the moisture with the back of a spoon.
Leave to cool. Roughly chop the spinach, and combine with the eggs and cheese. Season with salt, pepper, and a little nutmeg.
To assemble the bourekas, remove two sheets of phyllo dough from the stack and cover the rest with a damp cloth to stop them drying out. Place the sheets of dough on top of each other, cut into strips 6 inches wide and brush with olive oil. Place a tablespoon of filling in one corner, fold over the corner at an angle to form a triangle, and then wrap up tightly to form a neat little triangular parcel. Repeat with the rest of the dough and fillings.
Place the filled bourekas on your prepared baking sheets, glaze on both sides with beaten egg, and sprinkle generously all over with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake in the oven for 15–20 minutes until golden brown.
Variations
Include slivers of brie instead of soft white cheese, or some chopped nuts or roasted peppers for extra flavor. To liven up the potato filling, add a handful of chopped olives, a tablespoon of pesto sauce, or some sliced and cooked mushroom.
If you’d like to see more recipes like these, you’re in luck! I am giving away three copies of Jewish Traditional Cooking: Over 150 Nostalgic & Contemporary Recipes (retail value: $29.95).
Here’s how to enter this giveaway:
Required Entry: Leave a comment on this post with the dish you most like to cook for Shavuot (For eg., I like to make eggplant parmesan — and bourekas!) This is a required entry form, so make sure you do this first.
Optional Entry: Pin or repin this recipe on Pinterest — then let me know you have done so by leaving a separate comment.
This giveaway will be open until Wednesday, May 1st at 11:59 p.m. CST. The winners must be at least 18 years of age and live in the United States (sorry, folks!). They will be selected randomly and notified by email immediately. Good luck!
Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of the Jewish Traditional Cooking cookbook. The publisher will provide each of the three winners with their copy as well. I was not compensated in any other way to host this giveaway.
Photo Courtesy of the Jewish Traditional Cooking
French Onion Soup
Cheese blintzes
I love making cheesecake!
New York Style Cheesecake
cheese pastry (farmers cheese, green onion, egg, salt and pepper wrapped in puff pastry) is my favorite shavuos recipe.
Pinned!
ice cream!
pinned!
cheese souffle
cheese cake
Spinach lasagna
pinned the recipe
I like to make a chocolate cheesecake that is dairy and egg-free.
Cheese cake
FOND MEMORIES OF MY MOTHERS CHEESE KREPLACH
No Bake Cheescake
pinned!
Cheesecake and spinach bake!
CHEESE KREPLACH
Spinach quiche and either oreo cheesecake cupcakes OR cheesecake brownies.
Homemade pizzad
Cheesecake!!!!
I like to change up what I make, but for my husband this is the one time of year I make fettucine alfredo for him.
Cheesecake although I would love to make The Perfect Bourekas, but I don’t have a cookbook
this is a tough one but probably my white, veggie lasagna; I use a homemade Alfredo instead of red sauce and layer cheese and my favorite veggies.
pinned it on Pinterest
Lasagna and cheesecake!
Pinned it 🙂
Veggie Lasagna!
I like to make a fresh Greek salad and baked ziti with my homemade marinara sauce!!!
Quiche!
i like to make sweet noodle kugel… not so inventive but a classic!
cheesecake
I repinned the burekas recipe-yum!
I like to make mushroom and broccoli quiche, simple and good
Blintzes! But bourekas sound so much better!
I love to make greek salad!
CHEESECAKE & penne a la vodka
Quiche is always good. And cheesecake. 🙂
Homemade mac and cheese!
I am so tired right now that the thought of cooking anything is too overwhelming. But once I get my groove back, I know that I will be excited to make homemade pizza with green onions, feta, tomatoes, and fresh herbs.
My favorite Shavuot recipe is a chocolate caramel pie that is colloquially known as OH, GOD — because that is the first thing that everybody says when they taste it.
That sounds amazing! Is the recipe a secret?
Yum! Can you post this recipe!?
Cheesecake 🙂
I pinned this recipe, and I look forward to trying a non-dairy version. (Silly lactose-intolerance…)
Cheesecakes! Lots of Cheesecakes! I make the really yummy fattening kind. Then, I give a whole bunch of them to my friends and family who never do anything more than ask for “just a sliver” when faced with a ‘real’ cheesecake. On Shevous –It’s A Mitzvah!!! 🙂
I think I pinned it. Not sure how it works exactly. Oy
Sweet noodles in milk with cinnamon.
Def. want to try making these bourekas, am sure my kdis would love that!
I make a very refreshing soup from the traditions o my husband’s family who is Bukharian. It’s calle Oshi Jorgoti- soup with yogurt, make from black eyes peas, rice and mung beans, served cold with yogurt. Yum!
May I bother for the recipe please. Thank you
Oreo pudding pie – yum, yum and yum in that order!
Cheesecake, of course!
I repinned