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Gurian Christmas pie
Guruli ghvezeli: crescent pie of cheese and boiled egg baked in Guria for Christmas
GeorgianOn Christmas Eve, 6 January, kitchens across Guria, around Ozurgeti and Lanchkhuti, smell of baking ghvezeli: large crescent pies stuffed with fresh cheese and chunks of boiled egg, their shape said to recall the crescent moon. They are baked in batches, carried to relatives and eaten through the holidays with tea. A common mistake is overfilling, which makes the crescent split at the seam in the oven. Chef's tip: let the yeasted dough rise once, shape the pies, then give them 15 minutes more so they puff into soft, rounded crescents. Imeruli and sulguni usually use animal rennet; look for vegetarian ones.
- Total time
- 70 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 ⅛ lb plain flour
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- ¾ cup warm milk
- 3 ½ oz matsoni or plain yogurt
- 1 egg
- 1 ¾ oz buttermelted
For the filling
- 10 ½ oz Imeretian cheese or mild fetacrumbled
- 5 ½ oz sulguni or mozzarellagrated
- 5 eggshard-boiled and chopped
- 1 eggraw, beaten
For the glaze
- 1 egg yolkbeaten with 1 tbsp milk
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Mix 1 ⅛ lb plain flour, ¼ oz fast-action dried yeast, 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp salt. Add ¾ cup warm milk, 3 ½ oz matsoni or plain yogurt, 1 egg and 1 ¾ oz butter and knead for 8 minutes into a soft, smooth dough. Cover and leave to rise for 1 hour, until doubled.
8 minStep 2: Mix 10 ½ oz Imeretian cheese or mild feta, 5 ½ oz sulguni or mozzarella, 5 eggs and 1 egg.
Step 3: Heat the oven to 400°F (fan 350°F) and line two trays with baking paper.
Step 4: Divide the dough into 4. Roll each piece into a 25 cm circle about 5 mm thick.
Step 5: Spread a quarter of the filling over one half of each circle, leaving a 2 cm border. Fold the other half over and press the edges, then bend the pie gently into a crescent. Crimp the seam tightly. Common mistake: overfilling; the seam bursts.
Step 6: Rest for 15 minutes, brush with 1 egg yolk and prick the tops twice with a fork.
15 minStep 7: Bake for 25–30 minutes, until deep golden and hollow-sounding underneath. Cool for 10 minutes before slicing.
30 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 40 g
- Fat
- 20 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does gurian Christmas pie take?
- About 70 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 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 plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of fast-action dried yeast?
- Fresh yeast, three times the weight.
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