Feta-and-Herb Phyllo Tart Recipe (2024)

Ratings

4

out of 5

505

user ratings

Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Note on this recipe and see it here.

Cooking Notes

Flowergarden129

Since you emphasize the importance of using high quality phyllo, how do you identify which of the commercial brands is a good one?

Susan

A video of this folding technique would be very helpful.

Barbara

I wonder if we might have a video of Mr. Ottolenghi making this? The prep is sort of confusing.

Klkruger

No need to press the cheese/herb mix into the tart; simply use a small spoon and fill in all the spaces, repositioning the spiral as needed. I mixed the custard in a 2-cup spouted measuring cup which allowed gentle pouring over the cheese mix avoiding the spiral). Pour lightly. By the time you've gone over the tart one time, the custard will have soaked in wherever you started pouring; repeat pouring gently till all the custard is used.

Jim McGrath

This recipe cries out for a video... It has a lot of technique.

Chef Michael

Great product. However, I found the cooking instructions for the phyllo too hot, too long. Burnt the first round. Dropped the temp to 375 F, about 12 minutes. Also, next time I make this, I will use 6 sheets for the base. Also, 1.5 ounces of Romano doesn't come close to 2 cups shredded. Baked off the custard @ 350 F. End product was greatly appreciated by my client- she asked for it again for Memorial Day week-end.

Riv

This might help in choosing the right brand of Phyllo; it seems there is't one best brand for every recipe.
http://www.saveur.com/article/Techniques/Phyllo-Finds?image=4

Ellen

Thanks for the link! It appears that Kontos brand, number 5 phyllo is best for this type of recipe.

Francesca

It's explained in "The Challenge of Perfect Phyllo," cited above, but that involves opening a box and testing a sheet for springiness. Can anyone tell us some actual good brands?

jaye

This recipe begs for a video demonstrating the construction of the tart shell.

Madi

I made this a week ago and am making it again. Technique is easier second time round and properly thawed phyllo makes a huge difference. I did butter the strips to make them easier to handle. Its a keeper recipe now that I feel it's easier to assemble!

Laura Perry

I used frozen, defrosted in the fridge overnight. It worked perfectly, and the guests loved it.

One quick tip: you can easily "grate" both the cheeses in a mini food processor. Takes just a few seconds and gives you nice, tiny crumbles for slipping between the spirals of phyllo.

Anna

Quite tasty. Made in iron skillet. Took a while to make working with phyllo dough for the first time. I found spreading butter with my hand worked easier than with a brush. The bottom was crispy, I wouldn't add more layers.

emily

I use the organic filo dough from The Filo Factory. it is sold in my local food coop in the freezer section. If I defrost it in the fridge overnight then let come to room temperature for 1-2 hours, it is easy to work with and doesn't shatter/break unless it gets too dry. I keep a damp dish towel/flour sack cloth over top of the filo to keep it from getting too dry but the recipe works pretty fast so I didn't have too much trouble.

J

Made with parsley, mint and dill as I had them to hand. Major hit with everyone.

Margaret

Drawn in by the beautiful photo, I made this yesterday following the recipe closely, upping the melted butter by one tablespoon. It managed to look like the picture but we were disappointed with the taste. The internal folded phyllo fans add no flavor but plenty of dryness. A quiche would have tasted better.

Margaret

Getting ready to make this. The ingredients call for "2 lightly packed cups/50 grams finely grated pecorino Romano (1½ ounces/45 grams)" I measured out my 50 grams and it is just 1/2 cup. HELP!

Kftell

How many eggs?

Beth Ann

It would be good to use a slightly damp tea towel to keep the stack of phyllo dough damp while you are working on the accordion folds and snail/swirl structure. Our tart looked more like a “rustic rose” than a perfect swirl but it was still really pretty.

JLK

The instructions are incomplete. What do you do with the overhang in the shell? Fold it over before first bake? It doesn’t say (so I did). Mostly the steps for the folded filo are very confusing; I’m a very experienced and competent home cook and a huge Ottolenghi fan (own 5 of his cookbooks) and have made tons of tarts in my day but I could not understand the fan fold at all and the filo kept breaking as it was getting dry (finally put on damp towel). I improvised. please explain!

tartanhabit

some of us are visual learners .... please!

Jarrett

Spinach parsley feta and pecorino is the mixYou can make the strips wider/make the tart deeper if you wantAnd don’t forget you’re cute!!

Joan

This was a sensation for New Year's Eve. It was filling enough to feature as a brunch dish with a dark green salad. I anticipated, and rightly used only half the custard ingredients. It was showy, delicious and very popular!

Chuck

I have made this a couple of times and, while challenging, produces a very attractive and tasty tart. One trick that I finally used is putting the mixed cheese/custard into either a pastry bag or a Ziploc. This makes it far easier to pipe the custard in between the phyllo spirals. Enjoy!

Vicki

What size tart pan do you recommend?

Amber R.

Couldn't find phyllo in the supermarket so I used puff pastry instead and it was delicious! I also think the puff pastry made for quicker assembling.

fryfry.me

Tried this today, the custard was too eggy, needs additional milk. Will try again, upping the ratio to be more quiche-esque, i.e. 2 cups liquid to 4 eggs, not 1 1/4 cups as listed.

jmo

This is so great. Have made many times so the construction is easy. It doesn’t matter if it’s perfect. It all cooks up great. Great leftovers too. I use whatever herbs are on hand.

MJ

I used frozen phyllo dough from Trader Joe's. It worked great! The other half of the box I used to make a half sheet pan worth of baklava using the recipe from Melissa Clark. Equally delicious and a great way to not have any leftover phyllo dough!

Private notes are only visible to you.

Feta-and-Herb Phyllo Tart Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How many layers of phyllo dough should I use? ›

Typically, phyllo dishes should have a finished thickness of 3 to 10 sheets per layer. (A one-pound box of phyllo contains about 20 sheets.) Tip: Phyllo pastries can often be very brittle when baked. We recommend using a serrated knife to cut the finished dish to prevent all of the filling from squishing out.

Can I use phyllo instead of puff pastry? ›

Due to the big differences in thickness, their ingredients, and how they're made, you should not substitute phyllo dough for puff pastry or vice versa. They are very different pastries with differing textures, and recipes will turn out best if you use the correct one.

What's the difference between puff pastry and phyllo dough? ›

The main differences between puff pastry and phyllo dough are their fat content and preparation. Puff pastry is a laminated dough that gets its signature airy puff from layers of butter, while phyllo dough is comparatively low-fat. Phyllo dough is mostly flour and water and can dry out easily.

How to keep phyllo dough from cracking? ›

Lightly brush each layer of phyllo with melted butter or olive oil. To prevent edges from cracking, lightly brush edges first and then work into center. For fewer tears, use a soft bristle brush to spread oil or butter over phyllo.

Do you thaw phyllo dough before using? ›

The best way to ensure that your phyllo dough remains whole is to let it thaw before using and unrolling it, and to keep it covered under slightly damp kitchen towels to keep it from drying out at room temperature (via My Greek Dish).

How to keep phyllo from getting soggy? ›

To achieve a crispy and light texture with phyllo dough, make sure to brush each layer with melted butter or oil. Additionally, avoid overloading the layers with too much filling, as this can contribute to a soggy result.

Which is healthier phyllo or puff pastry? ›

Even better, switch your pastry from shortcrust or puff to filo. This is the lowest-fat pastry by far, with 2.9g fat per 100g. This compares with 26.2g for puff or 31.4g for shortcrust. Filo is the lowest-calorie option too, and it's easy to use.

What temperature do you bake phyllo dough? ›

Heat the oven to 375 degrees F and prepare your thawed phyllo sheets by laying them flat and covering them with a very lightly damp towel to keep the phyllo from drying out and breaking. Assemble the phyllo pizza crust. Brush a large baking sheet with extra virgin olive oil so the phyllo does not stick.

Why is my filo pastry chewy? ›

A very common mistake is to leave it defrost at room temperature as this will make the outer layers gummy; when working with phyllo dough, it should be defrosted, but still cold.

Are crescent rolls puff pastry? ›

The crescent-shaped croissant is a flaky pastry with buttery layers whereas a puff pastry is a drier composition of dough. Both use similar ingredients and preparation work.

What is a good substitute for phyllo dough? ›

You can swap in puff pastry for phyllo dough in a pinch, and the other way around, but don't expect the same results. Here's the best way to use each of these flaky, versatile doughs. It's easy to love any recipe calling for phyllo or puff pastry.

What is another name for phyllo dough? ›

Name and etymology

The name filo (phonetic) or phyllo (transliteration) comes from Greek φύλλο 'leaf'. In Arabic, it is called ruqaq or ruqaqat; in the Maghreb, warqa (Arabic: ورقة) which is different from regular filo dough. In Turkish, it is called yufka 'thin'.

Why do you put vinegar in phyllo dough? ›

There are two key elements to promoting the extensibility necessary in the dough: adding vinegar to the dough, which weakens some of the gluten bonding, making it less elastic; and ample resting. Of course, it takes practice, just like working with any kind of dough.

Is it better to use butter or olive oil for phyllo dough? ›

Tip #2: Add Butter or Oil for Flaky Phyllo Layers

For those who don't want to use dairy, you can substitute extra-virgin olive oil for the butter. Just make sure you're doing one or the other—you will not achieve that delicious, flaky texture without the extra fat!

Why is my filo pastry not crispy? ›

Make sure the pastry is completely covered. Do you have to brush filo with butter? Not necessarily, but butter is used traditionally and creates beautifully golden and crisp layers. If you don't want to use butter, you still need to brush the pastry with another form of fat to help your pastry cook properly.

How many layers of puff pastry do you use? ›

A typical Puff Pastry can have a ranges of between 500 - 700 layers depending on the total of folds involved. You can fold the dough in a number of different ways and the two most common ways are called the " Single Fold / Letter Fold" and "Double Fold/ Book Fold".

Can you layer 2 sheets of puff pastry? ›

Yes, but you might want to use an eggwash or water to make sure the two layers stick together. Yep, there are recipes that call for exactly that.

How thick should phyllo dough be? ›

The final gluten free filo pastry sheet should be less than 1mm thin – ideally, you want to get it to a thickness of about 0.5mm.

References

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Recommended Articles
Article information

Author: Geoffrey Lueilwitz

Last Updated:

Views: 6290

Rating: 5 / 5 (60 voted)

Reviews: 91% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Geoffrey Lueilwitz

Birthday: 1997-03-23

Address: 74183 Thomas Course, Port Micheal, OK 55446-1529

Phone: +13408645881558

Job: Global Representative

Hobby: Sailing, Vehicle restoration, Rowing, Ghost hunting, Scrapbooking, Rugby, Board sports

Introduction: My name is Geoffrey Lueilwitz, I am a zealous, encouraging, sparkling, enchanting, graceful, faithful, nice person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.