Recipe - Leek Burek (Leek Pie)

A burek is a savory pie.  This was a great vegetarian main.  You can make the dough or use puff pastry.  If you go the puff pastry route, just make sure it's defrosted and go straight to assembly steps.

I will definitely make it again, but would probably add some garlic and other flavors if I wasn't trying to be authentic!  I cut into mine a bit too early and it was soupy.  Make sure you wait the full hour after it comes out of the oven.  It was still super awesome, though!

Leek Burek

Filling

Ingredients:

• 3 large leeks 
• 16 oz cottage cheese
• 6 eggs
• 1/4 cup Greek yogurt
• 6 oz feta cheese
• 2 T. of melted butter

Directions

1. Strain the cottage cheese in a cheese cloth for 30 minutes.
2. Beat the eggs, yogurt, butter salt together. 
3. Chop leeks into very thin half moons.  Use only the white and light green parts.
4. Combine everything into one bowl

Dough (if not using puff pastry)

Ingredients:

• 5 cups flour
• 1-1/2 t. salt
• 2 cups lukewarm water
• 1/2 lb. butter or melted margarine

Directions:

1. Mix flour, water and salt together.
2. Kneed for about five minutes.
3. Cover and let rest for about 10 minutes
4. Take half the dough and roll it until it's as thin as you think you can get it.  
5. Brush with melted butter.  Fold sides to the center.  Butter and fold in half again.  Keep doing this until it's only about a 5 inch square.
6. Put in the fridge and do the same with the other half of dough.
7. Let rest about 15 minutes in the fridge.

Assembly

1. Roll one dough sheet into a 15 inch circle and place in the bottom of a pie pan.  
2. Add the filling.
3. Roll out the other half to about a 15 inch circle.  If your sheets are most rectangle than circle, when you place this sheet on top, make sure the long parts are not over lapping the long parts on the bottom so that the extra edge dough is more even.
4. Roll the dough around the sides like a pie.
5. Brush the top with butter.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.
7. Let rest about hour before cutting.

References:

• http://frosina.org/albanian-vegetable-pie-no-2-byrek-ose-lakror/
• http://globaltableadventure.com/2010/02/14/recipe-byrek-ose-lakror-leek-pie/