Bougatsa Chaniotiki-Creamy Cheese Phyllo Pastry from Chania is a beloved breakfast treat for visitors and locals alike. The must-try phyllo pie has a crispy buttery crust filled with a mix of cream and myzithra cheese served right out of the oven with a generous sprinkling of sugar.
The sweet and savory delicacy was born at Iordanis, a pastry shop in Chania, in 1924. This is my version of the famous pastry.
If you love this bougatsa recipe, you will also love the cheese pie-tyropita, spinach pie-spanakopita, or this potato-zucchini pie!
When we visit Chania we treat ourselves to bougatsa at Iordanis pastry shop which has been there for almost one hundred years. It is the kind of a place where streams of local people keep coming through the door for take-out.
What is bougatsa Chaniotiki
Bougatsa is a Greek breakfast phyllo pastry. Can be sweet or savory with a filling of custard, cheese, or ground meat between layers of phyllo.
The name bougatsa comes from the Ottoman word "pogátsa", which means stuffed pie.
Bougatsa Chaniotiki has a filling of tyrogalo aka mizithra cheese. Mizithra is a fresh soft cheese primarily produced on the island of Crete but can be found throughout Greece.
This type of bougatsa has its roots in the Ottomans who lived in Chania for many years, until the beginning of the 20th century. Iordanis's great grandfather learned the recipe in 1924 and it has become a family tradition since then.
Here is what you need
- Myzithra cheese. It is a Greek whey cheese from sheep or goat's milk, or both. It is a fresh cheese, similar to Italian ricotta. There is a dry version, used for grating similar to Italian ricotta salata. You can substitute with fresh ricotta mixed with goat cheese. Please check recipe card.
- Staka. This ingredient is optional because it is almost impossible to find outside Crete. Staka is a dairy product, derived from the cream that forms on the surface of goat and sheep milk, immediately after milking. It is heated it, on a low temperature. When it starts to liquefy, salt, flour and a little water are added. The butter is separated, aka stakovoutyro, and the coagulated mass of proteins that remains is the precious staka. It has a wonderful aroma and a whitish or pale yellow color. The taste of staka is strongly milky.
- All-purpose flour, butter and whole milk. To create a sauce similar to bechamel.
- Thin phyllo pastry sheets. Like the ones we use for baklava.
Here is how to make it
Detailed measurements and instructions can be found on the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
Make the creamy sauce
In a small saucepan, in medium heat add the butter (1). Add the flour and stir well until it is well mixed with the butter (2). Next, add the milk and keep stirring continuously to create a velvet semi-thick sauce (3). Remove from heat and mix it with the cheese and staka in a large bowl. Stir until the mixture is creamy and well combined.
Asseble the bougatsa
Cut the right side of your phyllo sheets to create a perfect square shape. (Image 1)
Take one sheet and brush with butter. (Image 2)
Lift one of the corners towards the center. Repeat with the rest of the corners and create a square envelope. Set aside. (Image 3)
Brush five phyllo sheets with butter and stack them together. Right in the middle place the square phyllo envelope. Rotate so the corners align centered with the sides of the sheets. (Image 4)
Place the cheese mix on top of the envelope. (Image 5) Fold the sheets by picking them up from the corners over the mixture and fold like an envelope. (Image 6)
Flip the envelope upside down.
Brush six phyllo sheets with butter and stack them together. Right in the middle place the square phyllo envelope with the mixture. The sides of the envelope should align centered with the corners of the brushed phyllo sheets. Please refer to the photos for the position.
Fold the sheets again by picking them up from the corners over the square and fold like an envelope. (Image 7)
Place bougatsa on the buttered baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes. (Image 8)
Cut into small rectangular pieces, sprinkle sugar all over, and serve immediately.
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Bougatsa from Chania
Equipment
- Rimmed baking sheet
- Large bowl
- Small saucepan
Ingredients
For the filling
- 2 cups sour mizithra cheese, soft 500 grams.
- ⅙ staka optional.
- 4 tablespoons all-purpose flour plus more in case it is needed.
- 4 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup whole milk plus more in case it is needed.
Phyllo
- 17 oz phyllo sheets One 450 grams packet.
- 4 tablespoons butter melted. Plus more in case it is needed.
For serving
- white sugar
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the mizithra, and staka. Stir well until well combined.
- Heat the oven to 390° F / 200° C.
- Brush a baking sheet with butter and set aside.
Make a roux
- In a small saucepan, melt the butter in medium heat, after butter has melted whisk in the flour continuously until it is well combined with the butter, one minute. Next, add the milk and keep stirring continuously to create a velvet semi-thick sauce, 2-3 minutes.Mix the roux with the cheese and staka until the mixture is creamy and well combined.
Assemble the bougatsa
- Cut the right side of your phyllo sheets to create a perfect square shape. Save the leftover phyllo pieces for later use.Take one sheet and brush with butter. Lift one of the corners towards the center. Repeat with the rest of the corners and create a square envelope. Set aside.
- Brush 5 phyllo sheets with butter and stack them together. Right in the middle place the square phyllo envelope. The corners of the envelope should align centered with the sides of the sheets.
- Place the cheese mix on top of the envelope. if you have leftover mixture save it in a container and refrigerate. Fold the sheets by picking them up from the corners over the mixture and fold like an envelope. Flip the envelope upside down.
- Brush 6 phyllo sheets with butter and stack them together. Right in the middle place the square phyllo envelope with the mixture. The corners of the envelope should align centered with the sides of the brushed phyllo sheets. Please refer to the photos in the post for the position.Fold the sheets again by picking them up from the corners over the square and fold like an envelope.
- Flip envelope, place on the buttered baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove bougatsa from oven and place on a serving plate. Cut in small rectangular pieces, sprinkle sugar all over and serve immediately.
Notes
Tips and substitutions
If you have any leftover cheese mixture refrigerate and use to make bougatsa triangles with the leftover cut phyllo sheets. Remember to butter the sheets before adding the mixture and folding. Serve with powdered sugar on top. You need fresh sour mizithra cheese for this recipe. There is dry mizithra available also, which is a hard cheese in the share of a ball best suitable for grating over pasta etc. Please don't get the dry version.A great substitute for sour mizithra.
Mix one cup/250 grams of fresh ricotta and one cup/250 grams of goat cheese. The goat cheese will give the tangy flavor that is needed. I tested the recipe with this combination without adding staka, and it was most successful. The taste is very similar and close to the authentic Iordanis recipe. Nutritional Info – Please remember the nutritional information provided is only an estimate and can vary based on the products used.Nutrition
