Real African Dishes: [MC-AllEthnic-Recipes] Epirus Thin Batter Pie with Feta - Greek; 23g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber

Thursday, October 20, 2011

[MC-AllEthnic-Recipes] Epirus Thin Batter Pie with Feta - Greek; 23g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber

* Exported from MasterCook *

Epirus Thin Batter Pie with Feta - Greek

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 9 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : LowerCarbs Veggie

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt -- scant
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups water -- plus 3 tablespoons
1 pound Greek feta cheese -- preferably made from sheep's milk, crumbled
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat the oven to 325F.
Brush a 15-inch round baking pan that is 2-inches deep with olive oil and sprinkle with a little flour, tapping the sides of the pan so that the flour coats the surface evenly.

Combine the 2 cups of flour and the salt in a large bowl and make a well in the center. Add 1 egg to the well and pour in 1 1/2 cups of the water. Mix with a fork to form a batter about as thick as pancake batter. Pour two thirds of the batter into a prepared pan and tilt the pan so that the batter spreads evenly all over the surface. Sprinkle the crumble feta evenly over the batter.

Beat the remaining egg and mix it into the remaining batter. Add the olive oil and the remaining 3 tablespoons water, mix well, and spoon the mixture over the feta. There will not and should not be enough to cover the whole surface - some of the cheese will show through. Bake on the center rack until the pie peels away from the pan easily, about 40 minutes. The alevropita should be about 1/2-inch thick once baked. Remove from the oven, cool slightly, and serve hot or at room temperature.

VARIATION: THIN BATTER PIE WITH GRATED ZUCCHINI (ALEVROKOLOKYTHOPITA)-
Trim and grate 1 large zucchini. Place in a colander and toss with salt. Work the zucchini with your hands, rubbing it against the holes of the colander and squeezing to rid it of as much liquid as possible. Add the grated zucchini to the batter in step 2 [when mixing the flour, egg, and water together]. Continue as directed, spreading about two-thirds of the zucchini-studded batter over the bottom of the pan, sprinkling with feta, and covering with the remaining diluted batter. Bake until golden, remove from the oven, cool slightly, and serve, either warm or at room temperature.

Makes one 18-inch pie; 8 to 10 servings

AuthorNote: I learned to make this and the next few batter pies one August a few summers ago after spending a couple of weeks in Ano Pedina, one of the most remote and most sparsely populated villages in the Zagoraboria. We stayed at a local inn, which also happened to be just about the only place in the village to eat. Reigning over the kitchen was a spry, seventyish lady named Kyria Stavroula. She wore a dark kerchief over her head and the typical dark, heavy, layered clothes of village women impervious to heat. Her face was wrinkleless from so many years spent in the cool, clean air of the Pindus Mountains, but her hands were another story. They were thick and strong like a man's hands, the manifestation of her energy. She made the butter and cheese at the inn herself, tended the garden, and every morning before most of us had taken our first sip of strong Greek coffee, she had gotten most of the day's cooking finished. Each day's menu always included
a few these batter pies. They seemed easy enough as I watched her make them, and they are. The trick is to keep them thin but to bake them properly so the bottom doesn't burn.

This and the next few pies are great as a fast supper together with a salad and also work well on buffet tables. These recipes may also be cut in half and baked in 8-inch round, preferably nonstick pans.

Cuisine:
"Greek"
Source:
"The Glorious Foods of Greece by Diane Kochilas, 2001"
S(Formatted by Chupa Babi):
"Oct 2011"
Yield:
"1 18-inch pie"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 317 Calories; 20g Fat (55.9% calories from fat); 11g Protein; 23g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 92mg Cholesterol; 817mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1 Lean Meat; 3 Fat.

NOTES : Alevropita Aginoti

Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0