Melitinia Santorinis (Μελιτίνια Σαντορίνης)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •round pastry cutter, 9cm
• •small pastry tweezers or clean narrow-tipped tongs
• •two rimmed baking sheets
• •fine sieve for draining cheese

Instructions

1. 1

   Drain the cheese

   Set the fresh mizithra in a fine sieve for at least 1 hour, or overnight in the refrigerator if it looks wet. Melitinia need a filling that mounds, not one that slumps into the pastry. Press it gently, don't punish it.

2. 2

   Make the dough

   Mix the flour, 90g sugar and salt in a wide bowl. Add the olive oil and rub it through with your fingers until the flour feels sandy. Stir in the water, brandy and beaten egg, then knead for 4 to 5 minutes until smooth and firm. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.

3. 3

   Mix the filling

   Beat the drained cheese with 120g sugar, honey, eggs, semolina, cinnamon, crushed mastic and lemon zest until thick and spoonable. The semolina is quiet but useful: it catches the cheese moisture as the tartlets bake, so the filling sets proud instead of weeping into the crust.

4. 4

   Roll and cut

   Heat the oven to 180C. Roll the dough on a lightly floured surface to about 2mm thick, thin enough to fold cleanly but not so thin it tears. Cut 9cm rounds and keep the scraps covered while you work.

5. 5

   Fill and pinch

   Place 1 rounded tablespoon of filling in the center of each round. Lift the dough rim up around the filling and pinch it into small pleats all the way around, making an open flower with the cheese visible in the middle. Use pastry tweezers if you have them, or your fingertips. The rim should hug the filling, not bury it.

6. 6

   Brush and bake

   Set the melitinia on lined baking sheets. Brush only the pastry rim with the egg yolk mixture and dust the filling lightly with cinnamon. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until the rims are pale gold and the cheese filling is set with a faint blush at the edges.

7. 7

   Cool before serving

   Let them cool on the tray for 10 minutes, then move them to a rack. Eat them warm or at room temperature. The texture is best the day they are baked, though they keep well for two days in a covered tin.

Chef Tips

• •Use fresh unsalted mizithra if you can find it. If not, anthotyro is the Greek kitchen's nearest substitute. Ricotta works only if you drain it overnight and accept that the flavor will be softer.
• •Crush mastic with a spoonful of sugar so it powders instead of sticking to the mortar. Use a light hand. Mastic should perfume the filling, not make it taste like church incense.
• •Serve melitinia at room temperature with Greek coffee or a small glass of sweet wine. They are Easter sweets, but nobody in Santorini waits for permission if the cheese is good.

Advance Preparation

• •Drain the cheese overnight if it is loose or watery; the dish depends on a filling that holds its shape.
• •The dough can be made 1 day ahead and kept covered in the refrigerator. Bring it back to room temperature before rolling.
• •Baked melitinia keep for 2 days in a covered tin at cool room temperature.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 60g)