When I run out of ideas for a meal, I always fall back on a classic from my childhood: Banitza or Banitsa. It is a Bulgarian speciality that can be eaten at any time of the day, as breakfast or as a dish at lunch or dinner.
Each region has its own recipe and each season has its own variation. In autumn, it can be sweetened and stuffed with pumpkin, called Tikvenik. In winter, cabbage (Zelnik) or leeks are added, and in spring, spinach.
At Christmas and New Year, it is also part of the menu. It is usually served at the end of the meal and filled with messages wishing health and prosperity for the coming year. This is the “Banitsa s kasmetcheta”. Sometimes they just put in a coin as a bean, a bit like the “galette des rois”.
The basic recipe consists of typical Bulgarian ingredients, namely “bialo sirene” cheese, a kind of cow’s milk feta, plain yoghurt, eggs and a little sparkling water so that it stays soft when cooked.
It is presented in the form of a cheese puff, alternating sheets of filo and stuffing, or it can be rolled into a snail shape (Vita Banitsa). This is the easiest way to make it, forming easy-to-handle rolls.
To find the ingredients nothing better than oriental grocery shops but you can very well use feta cheese, plain cottage cheese and brick pastry. But it’s better with filo pastry.
It is quick and easy to make. I usually prepare Banisa for dinner with a green salad or just a little yoghurt on the side, as is often the case in Bulgaria. Banitsa can be eaten hot, warm or cold.
Without further ado, the recipe and preparation steps. “Da vi e sladko” (good appetite) as we say in our country.
Bulgarian cheese puff pastry – Banitza
6 people – Difficulty: easy
Preparation 10 min – Cooking time 25 min
- 12 sheets of filo pastry
- 120g butter
For the stuffing :
- 400g feta cheese (or Bulgarian cow’s milk cheese)
- 200g cottage cheese (ideally Bulgarian yoghurt)
- 3 whole eggs + 1 yolk
- Sparkling water (1 to 2 tablespoons)
- Pepper
- Nutmeg
Mix the eggs with the yoghurt and add the coarsely crumbled cheese by hand or with a fork. Add the spices: pepper and nutmeg. Then add the sparkling water. Melt the butter. Take the first sheet of filo pastry and brush it with melted butter, then place a second sheet on top of the first and brush it with butter in turn. Spread the mixture over the filo sheets with a spoon and spread evenly.
Then roll the whole thing into a long sausage. Make sure you roll it lengthwise so that the sausage is as long as possible and not too tight or too loose. Repeat the process until there is no more filling or leaves. Place greaseproof paper on your mould or, failing that, a sheet of filo previously oiled.
Start by placing the first sausage in the middle of the mould, then add the next ones by sticking them to the previous ones, forming a snail shape from the centre outwards. Brush lightly on the outside of the sausage before adding the next one.
Optional: For a beautiful presentation, brush egg yolk on the top of the Banitsa.
Bake at 180 degrees for about 30 minutes, depending on your oven, but the Banitsa should be golden brown. Enjoy it while it’s still warm with Bulgarian yoghurt, of course.
