A savory pie with a chicken and sweet potato filling nestled between flaky layers of phyllo dough with 3 types of cheese and a creamy béchamel sauce that will melt in your mouth.
This is a Greek classic that I compare to a pot pie. The filling has chicken, onion, carrots, celery, sweet potatoes and spinach along with a trio of fresh herbs including dill, parsley and mint as well as paprika.
Little cubes of gooey Gouda cheese and salty feta also find their way into the filling and the eggy sauce that holds it all together has Parmesan in it.
If you look in the Food Dictionary under “rich” I’m sure you’ll see this pie with its 3 cheeses and abundant amount of butter. All that is right and good in this world.
Look for the phyllo dough in the frozen food section of your market usually by the frozen dessert section. If you haven’t worked with phyllo before make sure to place it on a clean, wet dish towel with another one on top to keep it from drying out as you work.
A savory Greek pie with a chicken and sweet potato filling nestled between flaky layers of phyllo dough with 3 types of cheese and a creamy bechamel sauce that will melt in your mouth.
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat; add the chicken, onion, garlic, celery, carrots and sweet potatoes. Season well with salt, pepper and paprika. Cook stirring often until chicken is browned on all sides and the vegetables begin to soften. Add the chicken stock, fresh herbs and nutmeg; raise the heat and bring to a boil; turn down heat and simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in spinach.
- Sauce: In a heavy-bottomed saucepan melt the butter over medium-low heat; whisk in flour and cook 3-4 minutes stirring often.Whisk in milk slowly and bring up to a boil over medium-high heat, then lower heat and simmer 3-4 minutes. Whisk in parmesan and paprika. Drizzle a little of the hot milk mixture into the egg while beating to temper it then slowly drizzle the egg into the milk while whisking. Once egg is fully incorporated remove from heat.
- Strain the the chicken mixture of liquid in a wire strainer in batches and place in a large mixing bowl. Mix in the gouda and feta cheeses.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish.
- Layer 8 sheets of phyllo dough in the bottom of the dish lightly brushing each one with melted butter and making sure to press the phyllo up against the sides of the pan. Spoon in the filling and evenly spread it out.
- Layer another 8 sheets of phyllo on top of the filling brushing each one with butter, fold in any overlap and brush that with butter too. Brush the top layer with butter and use a sharp knife to cut into squares or triangles.
- Sprinkle a little water over top to keep it from drying out and bake until golden brown 45-50 minutes. Allow to set 10 minutes before serving. May be served hot or at room temperature.
Notes
Adapted from Food Network
My boyfriend (who is Greek) would absolutely die of happiness if I made this for him! (and it would get him to eat sweet potatoes…win).
Joanne recently posted..Recipe: Summer Lemon-Vegetable Risotto
What a rich and flavorful pie. I like phyllo dough very much, so thin and crisp. This pie looks amazing and very appetizing. Bye dear, have a great day
notedicioccolato recently posted..Voglio un’interprete!
Hi Reeni, the pie looks so good and rich indeed!! I’ll pretend there’s no butter and will concentrate only on all the good veggies..haha..It helps me get rid of the guilt..Very nice version of the greek kotopita!
mia xara recently posted..Strawberries Romanoff
What a stunning Greek appetiser my friend, looks wonderful :D
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
That sounds great!
Blond Duck recently posted..Tales from Poetry Class