Recipes For Phyllo Pastry Sheets

HOMEMADE PHYLLO (OR FILO) DOUGH

Steps:

• Place 2 cups flour in a mixing bowl; make a well in the center. Drizzle in olive oil and add salt; add white wine vinegar and warm water. Mix until dough just comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, 1 or 2 minutes. Transfer dough ball to a lightly floured work surface.
• Knead until dough is smooth, using just enough flour to keep it from sticking to the work surface or your hands, 2 or 3 minutes. Continue to knead until dough is supple and elastic, about 5 more minutes. Wrap dough ball in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature, 1 to 2 hours.
• Divide dough into 20 (20 gram) portions using a kitchen scale; roll each portion into a ball. Place on plate and cover with plastic wrap to prevent dough balls from drying out while you begin to roll them out. Work in batches of 5.
• Mix cornstarch and 2 tablespoons flour together in a bowl. Dust a work surface and the first dough ball with the cornstarch mixture. Flatten out the dough ball and roll out into a circle, about 5 inches in diameter. Dust again with cornstarch mixture. Set circle to one side. Roll out 4 more dough balls to about the same diameter and stack them on the first one, dusting each layer with more of the cornstarch mixture to keep them from sticking together.
• When you have 5 circles, roll out the stack to a larger circle about double in size, turning as you go to maintain a round shape. Separate each layer and lay out the circles. Re-apply more cornstarch mixture where needed and restack them. Roll again until the 5-layer stack is paper thin, about 10 to 12 inches in diameter. Place on a sheet of parchment paper; top with another piece of parchment. Gently roll up the dough; wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate.
• Repeat with the remaining 15 balls of dough in batches of 5.

HOMEMADE PHYLLO PASTRY

Steps:

• Sift flour and salt into a mixing bowl and add the water with oil.
• Stir until forms soft dough, then knead in the bowl about 10 minutes.
• Dough will feel sticky at first, but kneading, it should develop into a dough that becomes smooth and satiny.
• When well mixed and smooth, wrap pastry in plastic wrap and leave it to rest at room temperature about one hour.
• If not all the dough is being used right away, wrap the unused portion and keep chilled in fridge up to a week.
• Always bring to room temp before using.
• Divide the pastry into 12 equal portions, shaping them into smooth balls.
• Cover with a cloth, except the one you're working with.
• Take a ball of dough, and shape it into a square.
• Place it on a lightly floured surface, and roll into a 6 inch square using rolling pin.
• Dust again with flour.
• Take the dowel, and place on one end of the pastry, and roll neatly onto the dowel, pressing firmly as you do so.
• Keep hands on each side of the pastry.
• 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.
• Unroll carefully.
• After second rolling, the pastry should be about 10x12 inches.
• Using the back of your hands, place them under the pastry and stretch gently, moving hands to keep it even, working toward the edges.
• The edges can be given a final stretch with the fingertips.
• You should wind up with a pastry that's 14x18 inches in size.
• Place on a cloth, cover with wax paper and fold the cloth over the top.
• Repeat the above process with remaining dough balls, laying each on top of the previous one with wax paper between them.
• Use soon after making as they'll go sour if you keep them too long.
• If desired, you can roll them out more thinly.
• Repeating the dowel rolling process more will result in a thinner square each time.
• 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.
• In Greece, they'll often use phyllo as a crust for certain types of pies, such as spinach.