Galaktoboureko
A dessert built on a contradiction: a very wet custard inside very dry pastry. To stop the filo going soft underneath, the custard has to be cooked thick enough that a spoon will stand up in it — any looser and it soaks the base before the pastry has a chance to bake. The rest is the familiar baklava rule: cold syrup onto hot pastry.
Your own work in that: 20 min.
- Syrup 20 min
- Semolina custard 20 min
- Layering 20 min
- Baking 50 min
- Soaking 80 min
Step by step
0 / 8 doneMake the syrup and cool it completely
Boil the sugar with the water, the strip of lemon peel and the cinnamon stick for 8 minutes, take it off the heat and only then stir in the lemon juice. Set aside. The syrup goes first because it must be cold the moment the pastry leaves the oven.
Ingredients: 350 g sugar · 300 ml water · 1 pcs lemon · 1 pcs cinnamon stick
Infuse the milk with zest and vanilla
Bring the milk to a boil with half the sugar, the lemon zest and the split vanilla pod, take it off the heat and leave covered for 10 minutes. Remove the zest and pod before going on.
Ingredients: 1000 ml milk · 150 g semolina · 180 g sugar · 4 pcs eggs · 60 g butter · 1 pcs vanilla pod · 1 pcs lemon
Cook the custard until a spoon stands
Rain in the semolina, whisking, and cook for 8 minutes over low heat, until so thick that a spoon stands upright in it for a moment. That is the simplest test — a looser custard will make the filo base soggy.
Ingredients: 1000 ml milk · 150 g semolina · 180 g sugar · 4 pcs eggs · 60 g butter · 1 pcs vanilla pod · 1 pcs lemon
The spoon stands for a moment — now the eggs.Beat in the eggs off the heat
Beat the eggs in a bowl with the rest of the sugar. Take the pan off the heat, wait 5 minutes and only then pour in the eggs in a thin stream, whisking hard; finish by stirring in the butter. Eggs added to boiling semolina set into lumps no amount of whisking will break.
Ingredients: 1000 ml milk · 150 g semolina · 180 g sugar · 4 pcs eggs · 60 g butter · 1 pcs vanilla pod · 1 pcs lemon
Build a base of eight filo sheets
Line a 24×32 cm tin, layering 8 sheets of filo with butter between each so the sheets overhang the edges. That overhang is folded back over later and is what seals the custard at the sides. Keep the rest under a damp cloth.
Ingredients: 400 g filo pastry · 180 g butter
Sheets overhanging the tin — the seal comes later.Pour in the custard and close the pastry
Pour in the warm custard, level it, fold the overhanging filo inwards and cover with six more sheets, buttering each. Tuck the last sheet underneath so no edge sticks up — a raised edge burns within the first ten minutes.
Ingredients: 400 g filo pastry · 180 g butter
Score the top only before baking
Score the top layers into squares, without cutting to the base. This is the difference from baklava: cut right through and the custard runs onto the tray. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes at 175 °C, to deep gold.
Ingredients: 400 g filo pastry · 180 g butter
Top layers only — otherwise the custard escapes.Pour on cold syrup and rest
Pour all the cold syrup over the hot pastry, slowly, along the score lines. Leave for 80 minutes so the syrup reaches the base. Only then cut the squares right through and lift them out.
Ingredients: 350 g sugar · 300 ml water · 1 pcs lemon · 1 pcs cinnamon stick
Before you start
Serve at room temperature, not fridge-cold
Galaktoboureko is best a few hours after baking, at room temperature. In the fridge the custard firms up and loses its creaminess while the filo goes damp — if you must chill it, take it out an hour before serving.
Fine semolina, not coarse
Fine semolina gives a smooth custard, coarse a distinctly grainy one. Both are authentic, but choose deliberately: with coarse semolina you feel it in every bite, and that changes the dessert.
Do not cover it after syruping
Covered tightly, it traps steam and the filo softens overnight. The custard is made with milk and eggs, so once cool keep it in the fridge, loosely covered with baking paper, and eat within 2 days.
