Greek Custard Pie (Galaktoboureko)
It’s funny, I do so much baking and have a never-ending list of recipes that I want to try and experiment with, but on some days it’s like I hit a total roadblock. I’m not sure what I want to make, nothing sounds good to me on that particular day, and I’m just sort of stuck. Enter my Chief Culinary Consultant. He’s awesome at thinking outside of the box and coming up with great ideas that often times elude me. So was the case right after New Year’s when I was doing some planning for the month of January and everything was just feeling “eh” to me. I was staring at a mile-long list of food ideas, but wasn’t feeling anything. He hopped on his phone, did some Googling, and started throwing out some new and fresh ideas. I could barely write them down fast enough. One of the ones he threw out was this Greek custard pie. He stumbled upon a recipe for it and after reading the ingredients, knew immediately we would love it. I couldn’t get to the kitchen fast enough for this one, and his intuition was definitely spot-on – we adored this!
In addition to the delicious factor, I was excited about my first-ever experiment with an authentic Greek dish in my kitchen. I have always enjoyed traditional Greek foods when eating out, especially spanakopita, moussaka and baklava, and had no doubt I would enjoy this. After checking out numerous recipes online, many of them being similar, I settled on this one because of the back story. The blogger actually ate this at the home of her in-laws in Greece and received the recipe from a cousin. Nothing warms my foodie heart quite like an old-fashioned family recipe.
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As with any recipe that involves working with phyllo dough, the preparation takes some time but the end product is no doubt well worth it. Layers of crispy, buttery, flaky pastry that is light as air. Absolutely worth it. The custard in this dish actually has a very similar flavor to the filling of a sfogliatelle (the Italian pastry that I still have yet to master) – both use semolina as a thickening agent and have a faint citrus undertone. I always keep semolina on hand for dusting my pizza peel when I make homemade pizza; I usually find it at a local Italian grocery store.
All-in-all this is not a difficult recipe, but it includes a few steps and layering phyllo dough can be slightly time-consuming. Trust me, it’s a small price to pay for the the wow factor this dessert delivers. For some step-by-step photos of the assembly process, be sure to check out Whipped (link is below the recipe) – she did a great job.
Do you have a favorite Greek recipe (sweet or savory)?
One year ago: Nut Rolls
Four years ago: Banana Muffins
Greek Custard Pie (Galaktoboureko)
Ingredients
Custard:
- 6 cups (1.46 l) whole milk
- 1 cup (167 g) fine semolina
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar, divided
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3 eggs
- Zest of 1 orange
Pie Assembly:
- 1 package phyllo dough, about 12 to 16 sheets
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter
Citrus Syrup:
- 1½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 1 cup (250 ml) water
- ¼ cup (62 ml) orange juice
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Have your pan ready to go - either a 16-inch round cake pan or a 10x13-inch lasagna dish. The phyllo should be room temperature or slightly cooler. Open the package right before using it so the sheets do not dry out.
- Stir the milk, semolina, ½ cup of the sugar, the butter, and vanilla in a large sauce pan over medium heat. Stir the mixture gently but constantly until it becomes thick like pudding. This may take up to 15 minutes or so. Remove the pan from the heat and cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Beat the eggs with the remaining ¼ cup of granulated sugar in a small bowl and then stir it into milk mixture. Stir in the orange zest.
- Melt the butter and begin by brushing the the bottom of your pan with melted butter.
- Layer the bottom of the pan with about half of the phyllo, liberally brushing with butter between each layer. Lightly press the sheets into the sides and corner and let the edges hang over the top; you will fold them over later. (Do not skimp on the butter! You should use half on the bottom layers and half on the top.)
- Pour the slightly cooled custard over the bottom sheets and spread to the sides. Layer the remaining sheets of phyllo on top of the custard as you did the bottom, continuing to brush melted butter between layers until you have used all the phyllo. Then, brush butter on the overlapping sides and roll the edges down creating a “rim” around the edge of the pan. Liberally brush the top and the edge with the rest of your butter.
- Bake until the top is golden brown all over, 30 to 45 minutes. (I suggest checking early and often, as you don't want the phyllo to burn.)
- While the pie is baking, make the syrup. Bring the sugar, water and orange juice to a boil in a small saucepan. Boil for 5 minutes then remove from the heat. Off the heat, stir in the vanilla extract; set aside.
- When you remove the pie from the oven, let it cool for 15 minutes. Then, pour the syrup evenly over the entire pie. Allow the pie to sit for at least 1 hour before serving so the syrup can be absorbed. Store leftover pie in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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I have been making this for years, starting back when I married into a Greek family. My special twist is adding Grand Marnier and orange zest to the syrup.
Yum!
This is especially for Eleni and Michelle: Please, please when you are getting recipes from your elders, videotape them! Record them any way possible! I did it when my mom made her wonderful stuffing for turkey because she never measured anything and I use that recording every Thanksgiving! She is no longer with us and I would be lost without her voice guiding me in the steps to making the most delicious stuffing in the world! It was the smartest thing I ever did 16 years ago. Believe me, you won’t regret it.
Such a great suggestion! I wish I had thought to do this before my grandma passed away!
What a blessing that must be that you have your mother with you every Thanksgiving to “help” with the stuffing. What a fabulous idea and thank you for sharing!
This is my favourite Greek dessert (although we make it with honey instead of orange juice in the syrup). An extra tip to make the presentation nice which my mum taught me is to lightly score the top of the pie with a knife both ways (like a checkerboard) before putting it in the oven; this will make the top fillo leaves come apart evenly instead of breaking up whichever odd way they please. You can also garnish each piece with a clove (useful when needing to cover so the leaves won’t stick). Also, beware of buying this dessert from cafés or restaurants… they often use cornflour instead of semolina because it’s cheaper.
Thank you so much for the tip!
My mom used to have a thing for this dessert – every single time we went to this great Greek restaurant near the World Trade Center in NYC, she would order some when she walked in the door. If they didn’t have any, she would be disappointed. I had never eaten it there even though she always wanted to share.
I have always had trouble working with phyllo but I think I am going to try this one of these days. To see what Mom liked about it. The custard? Maybe that was it. Or the crispy phyllo with the custard? I don’t know – I will see.
Thanks for sharing. Looks so good.
Just had to tell you how awesome this was. I made it this week and it was excellent and very simple. My Greek husband, whose favourite greek dessert is galaktoboureko, loved it. I will definitely make this again. Thank you.
Is this served best hot or can it be made the day before?
Hi Debbie, You can make this the day before but I would bring it to root temperature before serving.
That first photo is absolutely gorgeous. I am a custard lover (oh my flan), and this would be so impressive at a potluck or something. I’ve never made anything that was authentic Greek either! Guess we should all start somewhere, why not dessert?
YUM!!! Thanks for this. I am half greek but none of the recipes were passed on so I have nothing. Any more greek recipes you have, please share!! Everything you make is so good!
I’ll have to try this! I recently bought Vefa’s Kitchen which is considered the bible of Greek cooking because I want to cook more Greek food. I’d have to say my favorite Greek dish is Souvlaki. Probably because that was my introduction to Greek food when I was in. Athens in 1979. Made the experience even better because I got it from a walk up window. I also love Gyros, Pasticcio, and Spanekopita. Excuse any incorrect spelling. I’m not able to look up the words at the moment.
Hi Barbara, Thanks for sharing that book recommendation – I just added Vefa’s Kitchen to my Amazon wish list!
Looks and sounds divinely delicious! I’ll make it next time I have guests to impress. :)
If I didn’t love you before, I definitely love you now. I always get this when we go to Hella’s in Indianapolis. Your pics look like it is identical to what they serve. I cannot wait to make this. Thanks!
This looks delicious. I am a massive fan of custard tarts, but never had something like this. Must try this.
Nice recipe! :)
the flaky custard goodness is making me want to forget my january diet and dig in!
This sounds amazing and I’d never heard of it before. I LOVE baklava, and here’s my recipe for it: http://www.culinarythymes.com/melt-in-your-mouth-baklava/
It’s made with pistacios. Have a great weekend and thanks for posting this recipe!
Thank you for sharing I will definitely have to try this recipe!
Yum! This is my favorite Greek dessert!! I have always wanted to make this. Thanks for the great recipe. I hope it stands up to my boyfriends family’s recipe!
I totally get like that too. I have ALL these recipes I want to try, and then I go to pick one out and nothing is ever interesting. Those days are lame. This looks totally awesome though! I love Greek food!
I cannot WAIT to make this! I’m making a whole Greek meal next week for my family (who are Italian, not Greek – but close). I found a great pastitsio recipe (Greek Lasagna) if you’re interested…She has a lot of great authentic Greek recipes!
http://www.orthodoxmom.com/2009/09/greek-pastitsio-recipe.html
I have never heard of thism but it looks really interesting! In a good way! I think i’ll have to make it!
Interesting. Just this past Sunday, Brian and I took his mother out to lunch at a Greek restaurant and she ordered this for dessert. I’d never tried it so I tasted hers and it had an anise flavor to it which I didn’t care for. Your recipe sounds more to my liking. Thanks :)
This looks so delicious, I love Greek food, I Mr GG and I were really into making Baklava there for a while only we had to stop while our clothes still fit us. This is on my “must make list”
This looks absolutely delicious! I LOVE the idea of a citrus syrup on it! My favorite Greek food is savory -spanikopita – but I’ve never made it!
Wow, this looks so amazingly good. I love custard by itself, but with the phyllo and syrup on top this looks just divine.
this looks so good! especially the flaky top. i have the same problem sometimes. my to-bake list is sooo long but i still dont know what to bake!
I love, love, love, love, love Galaktoboureko. I live in a predominantly Greek neighbourhood, so there’s there’s a local bakery that makes an absolutely addictive version of it (along with some other amazing savoury pies and a kind of honey-soaked fritter that is beyond heavenly).
I’ve been too wussy to try making it at home, seeing as I can get a great ready-made version whenever I want, but it really does look quite easy… might just have to give it a go next time I feel like fussing with some phyllo dough. :)
“Honey soaked fritter” sounds like loukoumades to me! They’re absolutely delicious! Little fried dough balls slapped with a thin honey simple syrup while still hot and rolled in crushed nuts (we use pistachios, but I’ve seen variations). YUM! I’m Greek but I’ve never made galaktoboureko so I’m definitely saving this recipe!
Your chief culinary consultant definitely came through with flying colors on this one. It looks fantastic, Michelle! I love your lighting in these photos.
this looks beautiful. i am a sucker for custard. i know weird but i love it. I have never even heard of galakoboureko. That’s one thing i love about food blogging you hear about food you never would have heard about otherwise.
Mmmmmm….that looks so good! I already have everything needed except the Semolina. Having recently gone on the hunt for Semolina for some Basbousa, I need to clarify- is this Semolina of Semolina Flour? It’s all Greek to me. (pun intended) :)
Hi Michele – It is semolina, it sort of looks like what you would use for pastina – a fine porridge type of breakfast cereal.
Cream of Wheat type thing?
Yes, although don’t use Cream of Wheat!
Pastitsio is a favorite around our house, but we can’t seem to find a definitive “best” recipe for it. We keep trying new recipes and modifying and combining the best parts of each recipe. Hopefully someday we’ll find just the right mix of spices, etc for all the elements of this dish, but until then it’s fun to taste test our efforts!
Thanks! – bri <3