Savory Galatopita (A Greek Treat Made With Milk)!

Greece Is | May 17th, 2021

Galatopita - "milk pie" - is a popular springtime treat.

© Nikos Karanikolas

Greece IsEditor's Pick

The traditional milk-based treat known as galatopita is sweet to the taste and especially popular in the Peloponnese region of southern Greece.

Chef: Vlasia & Annoula Gini

Preparation & Cooking time: 30' & 40-50'

Serves: Degree of difficulty: easy

In spring, you can find the traditional milk-based treat known as galatopita nearly everywhere across the Peloponnese. It’s usually made without fyllo pastry, and it’s almost always sweet to the taste.

Here, we present the only variation we encountered on our trip to the region where the galatopita is salty and made without cheese. It’s delicious, with a memorable flavor in which you can still taste the sweetness of milk, as if you were eating fluffy béchamel with a fork.

METHOD

Put the milk in a medium saucepan and heat it, stirring often with a wooden spoon so that it does not “burn” at the bottom of the pan.

Once it’s well warmed, gradually add the flour, and continue to mix until it turns into a sauce.

Remove from the heat and allow the sauce to cool.

Add the onions, fennel and mint, and mix well.

Then gradually add the beaten eggs, stirring well.

Add the oil, salt and pepper and mix. Preheat the oven to 180° C.

Grease a pan with a diameter of 30-32 cm and pour the mixture into it, spreading evenly.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the surface turns into a nice golden color.

Let it stand and cool for a bit but serve warm after you cut it into pieces.

Originally published in Gastronomos magazine.

INGREDIENTS (for 1 pan with a diameter of 30-32 cm)

1 liter of whole sheep’s milk (most often sourced from smaller grocery stores. In supermarkets, the sheep’s milk is usually low-fat, but the recipe requires whole-fat milk). Alternatively, use whole cow’s milk.
4 eggs, beaten
170 g Durum wheat flour, sifted
2 spring onions, finely chopped
1/2 bunch of fennel, finely chopped
1/2 bunch of mint, finely chopped
130 ml olive oil
salt, freshly ground pepper