Traditional kasseri cheese pie with pastourma is scrumptious, easy to make, and will win glorious reviews at your dinner party or Sunday brunch.
My grandma Evgenia always made this kasseri cheese pie with pastourma for Christmas dinner, and it was the star of the dinner table. Grandma was a fierce cook, and this pie would have serious competition, including roasts, decadent potatoes, and cheese pies. It would always win, with many competing for the remaining slices.
What is a pita Ceasarias?
Pita Ceasarias is a Greek/Turkish phyllo pie with kasseri cheese, tomato slices, and pastourma (or pastirma) meat slices. It is named after Ceasaria (Kayseri),a big Turkish city near Cappadocia. Greeks also called pastourmadopita.
What is pastourma or pastirma?
Pastourmas or pastirma mostly called in English, is a kind of cured meat, usually beef. It is salted and cured with a spice paste of ground fenugreek seeds, Turkish red pepper and mashed garlic.
How to make this pie
Pastourmadopita – cheese pie with pastourma and kasseri is easy to make. Ingredients are phyllo sheets, a little butter, tomatoes, kasseri cheese, and pastourma. If you can’t find kasseri you can use sliced provolone.
I thinly slice the tomatoes, about 2-3 mm each slice. I pat them dry with a paper towel or drain in a strainer for 5 minutes to remove excess moisture.
The kasseri cheese gets thinly sliced also.
I butter a phyllo sheet and place it on the bottom of the pan. I add a couple of more buttered sheets and then layer kasseri cheese, pastourma, and tomato slices. I follow with another round of cheese slices cover with phyllo. I score it, sprinkle black sesame seeds (or poppy seeds) all over the top, and bake.
Detailed measurements as well as instructions can be found on the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
Tips & substitutions
I live in the Northeast, so in the winter, I like to use Campari tomatoes. They are the closest in taste to Greek tomatoes and can be found all year round in grocery stores. There are also organic options available. Camparis are small, so I use about 6-7 of them).
You can use provolone, it has a similar taste and texture to kasseri and will work great in this pie.
I get mine from Titan Foods, a Greek market in Astoria, NY. You can look for it in Syrian-Middle Eastern markets. Another option is to order it from Amazon.
Sure you can. You can use the pie crust from this spanakopita recipe if you like. You can also use puff pastry for this pie.
You can substitute it with thinly sliced pastrami.
You might also like:
- The classic Greek spinach pie – spanakopita is a great dish all year round.
- For an easy and yummy appetizer, try these feta cheese puff pastries with leeks and dill.
- A savory and delicious pie is the Cretan boureki – potato & zucchini pie.
- This Greek ratatouille – briam is SO good and can be a main or a side dish.
Check all the pantry items a Greek kitchen wouldn’t go without.
If you’ve tried this recipe or any other on The Greek Foodie, then don’t forget to rate it and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it.
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Kasseri Cheese Pie With Pastourma – Pita Ceasarias
Ingredients
- 8 phyllo sheets
- 20 slices kasseri cheese
- 20 slices pastourma pastirma from beef
- 2 tomatoes thinly sliced.
- 5 tbsp butter melted
- Cumin
For the top
- black sesame seeds optional
- poppy seeds optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 380 F.
- Lightly butter bottom of pan and sides.
- Sprinkle butter all over a phyllo sheet. Place it on the bottom of the pan with sides hanging out. Butter another and place on top of first phyllo in a cross way. Repeat with two more buttered phyllo sheets using the same method.
- Add a layer of kasseri cheese. Add a layer of pastourma. Add a layer of tomato slices.
- Sprinkle a pinch of cumin all over tomatoes. Add the remaining slices of kasseri. Cover with 4 buttered phyllo using the criss-cross method.
- Bring in the excess phyllo and roll it in to create a border. You can trim it a little if you need to before rolling it in.
- Lightly butter the top and score it. Sprinkle black sesame seeds all over the top. You can also use poppy seeds, regular sesame seeds, or nothing at all.
- Bake until top is a light golden brown (about 50 min depending on your oven)
Notes
Nutrition
This is my new favorite pie! The pastirma is absolutely exquisite. It is easy and fast to make, but the result is so delicious. I will revisit this recipe often.
Thank you so much Karin! x
What a great looking pie! I have never heard of pastourma but I sure would love to try it now. What a special treat!
This Pita Ceasarias is making me drool! It looks sooo delicious that even just by looking at it ..makes me crave!
I trust any recipe that has started with Grandma! Seriously the recipes that last through a few generations are no doubt, the BEST! This looks amazing!
We love Greek food and this sounds so delicious. I am so happy that we get Phyllo sheets easily here and that makes it so much easier. I am going to definitely give this a try!
This pie looks absolutely delicious! I’ve never had i before but definitely need to put on my to-do list!
Your recipes always remind us of our trip to Greece. Sitting around the table sharing memories with our kiddos, since they were to little to remember, has become a welcome addition to our weekly schedule. Thank you for sharing!
This Kasseri Cheese Pie With Pastourma was off the chain awesome! I love Greek food and grew up eating at my Best friend’s house (Kali). her mom always made such wonderful fresh-tasting meals that spoke to your soul! I love coming to your blog for the same reason! Happy New Year, and I really look forward to seeing more of your recipes.
This looks absolutely delicious! I’ve not had this before but it looks so good and I LOVE Greek cuisine. Will definitely me making this for my family soon. Thank you!!
I finally found phyllo in my grocery store (been looking for ages) and I can’t wait to cook with it! This pie is definitely high on my list!
I love Greek food and have been to Greece a number of times. So I just had to give this cheese pie a try. I used provolone and bresaola as couldn’t find the Greek cheese and pastourma. It was really good. I’ll def make again but would love to try with the original ingredients one day!