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Bourekas
Bourekas: Israeli puff pastry triangles with feta and potato filling
Bourekas are what Israelis grab from the bakery on a Friday morning or bring to a family gathering: puff pastry shapes with savoury fillings, shiny with egg and dotted with sesame. The tradition came from Sephardi Jews of Turkey and the Balkans, but in Israel it settled into puff pastry, with the shape telling you the filling at a glance (triangles for cheese, rectangles for potato in many bakeries). This version fills triangles with feta and ricotta and rectangles with herby mashed potato, and goes with a hard-boiled egg, pickles and grated tomato. Chef's tip: keep the pastry cold right up to the oven; warm puff pastry won't rise into flaky layers.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the cheese filling
For the potato filling
To shape
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Boil 10 ½ oz floury potatoes in salted water for 12–15 minutes until a knife slides through. Meanwhile fry 1 onion in 1 tbsp olive oil over a medium heat for 8 minutes until soft and golden.
15 minStep 2: Drain the potatoes, mash them with the onion, ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper and leave to cool completely.
Step 3: Mix 5 ½ oz feta, 3 ½ oz ricotta and half of ½ egg in a bowl until combined. Heat the oven to 400°F (fan 350°F) and line two trays with baking paper.
Step 4: Unroll one sheet of 1 ⅜ lb all-butter puff pastry and cut it into 6 squares. Put a heaped tablespoon of cheese filling on each, fold corner to corner into triangles and press the edges with a fork. Common mistake: overfilling; the filling bursts out of the seams in the oven.
Step 5: Cut the second sheet into 6 rectangles, put a spoonful of potato on one half of each, fold over and seal with a fork.
Step 6: Space them out on the trays, chill for 10 minutes if the pastry has softened, then brush with the rest of ½ egg and sprinkle with 2 tbsp sesame seeds.
10 minStep 7: Bake for 20–25 minutes until puffed high and deep golden, and the bases are crisp when lifted. Cool for 5 minutes and serve warm.
25 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 290 kcal
- Protein
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 22 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bourekas take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of feta?
- Goat's cheese or ricotta salata, same amount.
- What can I use instead of egg?
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed + 3 tbsp water per egg, left for 5 minutes (baking only; vegan).
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