Galaktoboureko

While Baklava is certainly the most famous of Greek desserts, it isn't necessarily the most beloved in Greece. A lot of my family prefer Galaktoboureko and with good reason. It is a creamy custard filling between butter sheets of flaky phyllo dough that is then doused in a simple syrup. Seriously, what's not to love?

While it may appear that there are a lot of steps in this recipe, please do not be intimidated by it. It comes together pretty easily and once you've done it the first time, it will take you half the time to do it on your second attempt. This dessert will make you look like a culinary pro and it is generally once of the first to go on Greek dessert tables. Did I mention that it's freaking fantastic? Okay, let's go for it. I generally have all of my ingredients pre-measured and ready to go before I turn on a single burner. It makes for a smoother process. Here's what you need:

For Custard:

3 cups milk

3/4 cup Cream of Wheat

3 egg yolks

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 Tbs. vanilla extract

1 Tbs. butter

To Assemble:

1 package of phyllo (2 packages are in the box)

2 stick melted butter

For Simple Syrup:

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup water

1/4 lemon (kept in a single piece)

1 Tbs. honey

The first thing that I do is to get the simple syrup going. Just add the sugar and water into a saucepan and bring it to a high simmer.

Add in the chunk of lemon and simmer for 15 minutes or so, stirring occasionally. After 15 minutes, take it off the heat and stir in the honey until it dissolves.

Set it aside and allow the syrup to cool.

Next we're going to make the custard. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the sugar until combined, set aside.

In a large pan, heat the milk until it just starts to boil.

Add in the cream of wheat and whisk it together until it's incorporated. Reduce the heat to medium low.

Using a spoon or a ladle, add a small amount of the milk mixture to your bowl of egg yolks and whisk vigorously to combine.

After about 30 seconds, add in a little bit more of the milk mixture. What we're doing here is tempering the eggs and bringing them up to temperature so that they don't scramble when you add them to the pan. Keep adding milk to the eggs until you've added a cup or so and then add the entire contents of the bowl to the pan, whisking as you go.

Once it has all come together and thickened, add the vanilla and butter.

Now we're ready to assemble the dessert! Butter the bottom and sides of an 8x8 or a 9x9 inch pan. Then, take your entire stack of phyllo dough and cut it in half. With the first half of the dough, put a piece of phyllo into the pan and then brush the phyllo generously with butter (using your fingers to keep the phyllo still).

Brush each piece of phyllo with butter until you've added the entire 1/2 stack to the pan. Then, spoon all of the custard into the pan.

Finally, start adding the second stack of phyllo piece by piece and brushing each piece with butter until you've used up all of the butter.

Using a sharp knife, score the too half of the phyllo in whatever size squares you'd like (this will make cutting it easier after it's baked).

Bake the galaktoboureko in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until the phyllo is a nice golden brown. Once it's done baking, allow it to cool to room temperature and, using your sharp knife, cut the pastry all the way to the bottom.

Finally, spoon the syrup over the top (making sure to get around all of the edges and in all of the cracks). Pop it in the fridge for an hour or so to allow for the syrup to be absorbed and to allow the custard to set.

Then, prepare to have the doors of heavenly Greek desserts opened wide for you because if you've made this, you're officially a Greek cook.