Homemade Phyllo Pastry

Total Time: 30 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins

Ingredients

• 4 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/3 cups tepid water
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Recipe

• 1 sift flour and salt into a mixing bowl and add the water with oil.
• 2 stir until forms soft dough, then knead in the bowl about 10 minutes.
• 3 dough will feel sticky at first, but kneading, it should develop into a dough that becomes smooth and satiny.
• 4 when well mixed and smooth, wrap pastry in plastic wrap and leave it to rest at room temperature about one hour.
• 5 if not all the dough is being used right away, wrap the unused portion and keep chilled in fridge up to a week.
• 6 always bring to room temp before using.
• 7 divide the pastry into 12 equal portions, shaping them into smooth balls.
• 8 cover with a cloth, except the one you're working with.
• 9 take a ball of dough, and shape it into a square.
• 10 place it on a lightly floured surface, and roll into a 6 inch square using rolling pin.
• 11 dust again with flour.
• 12 take the dowel, and place on one end of the pastry, and roll neatly onto the dowel, pressing firmly as you do so.
• 13 keep hands on each side of the pastry.
• 14 unroll the pastry and dust the work surface and pastry with a little flour, and roll up again from opposite side as before, exerting pressure as you go.
• 15 unroll carefully.
• 16 after second rolling, the pastry should be about 10x12 inches.
• 17 using the back of your hands, place them under the pastry and stretch gently, moving hands to keep it even, working toward the edges.
• 18 the edges can be given a final stretch with the fingertips.
• 19 you should wind up with a pastry that's 14x18 inches in size.
• 20 place on a cloth, cover with wax paper and fold the cloth over the top.
• 21 repeat the above process with remaining dough balls, laying each on top of the previous one with wax paper between them.
• 22 use soon after making as they'll go sour if you keep them too long.
• 23 if desired, you can roll them out more thinly.
• 24 repeating the dowel rolling process more will result in a thinner square each time.
• 25 phyllo can be used like a puff pastry when thicker, or it's wonderful in baklawa, lamb pastries, or many other mid eastern sweets when rolled very thin.
• 26 in greece, they'll often use phyllo as a crust for certain types of pies, such as spinach.