Prasopita

Greek winter pie of leeks sweated in olive oil and layered with feta between sheets of filo

Origin: Greece

From the journey of Leek.

Greece has a pie for every vegetable that grows and prasopita is the one for the depth of winter. The pita family is enormous: spanakopita with spinach, hortopita with wild greens, kolokithopita with courgette, tyropita with cheese alone. Each is the same architecture, filo above and below with a vegetable filling between, and each belongs to a season. The leek pie belongs to the months when the wild greens have gone and the leek is standing in the ground at its sweetest. What the filling needs is patience and salt. Leeks hold a great deal of water, and a wet filling turns the bottom layers of filo to paste, which is the classic failure of every pie in this family. Greek cooks salt the sliced leeks and let them stand, then squeeze them, and then sweat them in olive oil until they have collapsed and any remaining liquid has gone. Only then does the feta go in. The feta does two jobs, seasoning the filling and, because it is dry and crumbly rather than melting, absorbing what little moisture remains. It should be a real barrel-aged Greek feta, sharp and salty, rather than a mild block, since the leeks are sweet and there is nothing else to push against them. Olive oil rather than butter between the sheets is what makes it Greek rather than Turkish or Balkan, and a good prasopita is judged on whether the base is as crisp as the top. Served warm or at room temperature, cut into squares, as a first course, a light supper, or something eaten standing up.

Ingredients

Filling

1.2 kg leeks, white and pale green only, split, washed, and finely sliced
2 tsp salt, for drawing
100 ml extra virgin olive oil
1 whole onion, finely chopped
300 g Greek feta, crumbled
3 whole eggs, beaten
3 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp fine semolina or breadcrumbs

Pastry

400 g filo pastry, about 12 sheets
120 ml extra virgin olive oil, for brushing

To Finish

1 tbsp sesame seeds, optional

Method

Toss the sliced leeks with the 2 tsp of salt in a colander and leave for thirty minutes, then squeeze them firmly in handfuls to drive out the water.
Warm the 100 ml of olive oil in a wide pan and cook the onion for five minutes, then add the squeezed leeks.
Sweat over a medium-low heat for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring, until the leeks have collapsed entirely and the pan is dry.
Cool completely, then fold in the feta, beaten eggs, dill, mint, and pepper. Do not add salt; the feta carries plenty.
Heat the oven to 180°C. Brush a 30 x 22 cm baking dish with oil and lay in six sheets of filo, brushing each with oil and letting the edges overhang.
Scatter the semolina over the base layers, then spread the filling evenly.
Lay the remaining six sheets over the top, brushing each with oil, then fold the overhanging edges inwards and brush again.
Score the top layers into squares with a sharp knife, cutting through the pastry but not into the filling, and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Bake for 50 to 55 minutes until deep golden and crisp all over. Rest for at least twenty minutes before cutting through.

Notes

One point two kilograms of leeks reduces to a filling that just fits the dish. It always looks like far too much. Use a real barrel-aged Greek feta. Mild supermarket blocks are wetter and less salty and give a bland pie. Olive oil rather than butter between the sheets is what makes this Greek. Butter gives a richer, more Balkan result and is not wrong, but it is a different pie. It keeps two days and is good at room temperature; refresh in a hot oven for ten minutes to bring the crispness back. Do not refrigerate uncovered, which softens the filo. Serve as a first course, a light supper with a tomato salad, or cut small as part of a meze.

The Gastrographer

Name: Prasopita
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Greece
Ingredients: 1.2 kg leeks, white and pale green only, split, washed, and finely sliced; 2 tsp salt, for drawing; 100 ml extra virgin olive oil; 1 whole onion, finely chopped; 300 g Greek feta, crumbled; 3 whole eggs, beaten; 3 tbsp fresh dill, chopped; 2 tbsp fresh mint, chopped; 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper; 2 tbsp fine semolina or breadcrumbs; 400 g filo pastry, about 12 sheets; 120 ml extra virgin olive oil, for brushing; 1 tbsp sesame seeds, optional

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control