Bulgarian Banitsa
A Savory Pastry with Swiss Chard and Sirene Cheese Filling

You might recognize many Bulgarian dishes as versions of Turkish or Greek staples. This is due in large part to the fact that these countries were, for nearly 500 years, part of the Ottoman Empire. The empire was a sprawling cultural mélange whose peoples mixed freely, sharing ideas, ingredients and cooking techniques. Though the Ottomans were kicked out of Bulgaria a century ago, the empire left its stamp on Bulgaria’s cuisine.

Banitsa is a pastry made with layers of buttered filo dough and is similar to Greek spanakopita, which has a cheesy filling combined with layers of flaky, golden pastry. And though we had versions in Bulgaria that were virtually identical to spanakopita with steamed greens and cheese, we also had uniquely Bulgarian versions, such as pumpkin banitsa, which is an autumn tradition in Bulgaria, much like pumpkin pie is in the US.

This recipe is simple and delicious. It does not call for any herbs or spices, but I think that flavors of the basic ingredients more than satisfy. That said, feel free to add dill, or garlic, or nutmeg to liven things up if you feel it needs it. This recipe also creates the simplest sheet form of the pastry – prepared in a baking pan with the filling between top and bottom layers of filo sheets. After baking, it is cut into squares and served. There were more elaborate forms in Bulgaria. My favorite is where the filling is rolled in sheets of buttered filo, and the roll is then spiraled into a round cake pan. It’s quite pretty. Once I master this form, I’ll be sure to share pictures on the site.

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs. (1.5 kilo) Swiss chard
• 1 medium onion
• 1/3 c. butter
• 4 eggs
• 2 c. sirene cheese (Bulgarian feta cheese)
• ¾ c. thick plain yogurt
• ½ c. grated parmesan cheese
• ¼ c. melted butter
• 8-9 sheets filo dough
• 1 t. black pepper

Directions:

1. Thoroughly wash the chard. Remove tough stems and veins. Steam for 3-4 minutes. Cool.

2. Remove water from chard by thoroughly wringing and wrapping tightly in a clean towel (or paper towel).

3. Coarsely chop the steamed chard.

4. Sauté the onion in 1/3 c. butter for 5 minutes or until it just begins to caramelize. Cool.

5. In a large mixing bowl, combine crumbled sirene (feta) cheese, eggs, yogurt, pepper, chard, with the onion and the butter it was cooked in. Stir until thoroughly combined.

6. Preheat oven to 350°.

7. Grease an 8 x 12 baking dish with the melted butter. Place a sheet of filo dough on the bottom. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with 1-2 T. parmesan. Repeat.

8. You can either do 4 layers followed by all of the filling and then 4 layers on top, or do 3 layers, half of the filling, 3 more layers (to create a center layer), the rest of the filling and then the remaining 3 sheets.

9. Bake in the oven at 350° for 40-45 minutes. The center should rise and the filo dough should be golden.