Heaven might just be found in these flaky, buttery triangle shells oozing with melted cheese and herbs. At family gatherings growing up, Armenian Cheese Borek were always my favorite appetizer.
It wasn’t until I started this blog that I ventured into the world of phyllo dough, having previously only benefited from others’ divine creations.
Working with phyllo dough is not too difficult. The main thing is to completely defrost it by putting it in the fridge the night before or setting it on the counter an hour before. Also, it’s important to not let it get dried out as you’re working with it. One method is to cover it with plastic wrap, topped by a damp towel.
What ingredients do I need to make Armenian Cheese Borek?
- 1 pound of phyllo dough
- 1 pound of jack cheese (shredded or chopped in a food processor)
- ¾ bunch of parsley
- ½ of a large yellow onion
- 1 ½ teaspoons melted salted butter
- 1 egg
- 1 ½-2 cubes of melted salted butter for brushing between layers of phyllo dough
How do I make Borek?
Finely dice onion and parsley leaves. Shred or mince cheese in a food processor.
Whisk an egg with a tablespoon of just-melted butter (you don't want to boil your egg).
Stir all ingredients together (onion, parsley, jack cheese, butter and egg.)
Unroll a defrosted package of phyllo dough. Cut the entire stack of phyllo dough sheets in half, length-wise, to make strips about 3-4" wide. Cover one stack with saran wrap and a wet towel, to keep moist.
Butter one strip of phyllo dough with a pastry brush. Add another strip of phyllo dough to the top, and brush that layer with butter. Add a third strip of phyllo dough to the top, and brush the final layer with butter. You should have three sheets of phyllo dough, buttered in between.
Add 2 tablespoons of filling in the bottom corner of your phyllo dough. Take the bottom corner of all sheets and make a diagonal fold to the other side. Continue folding using a flag roll method. Brush the tops and bottoms of all the boreks with butter before baking and place on a cookie sheet. (You won't need to grease the cookie sheet.)
Bake in the middle rack at 375 degree Fahrenheit for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides. Serve immediately. Leftover Armenian Cheese Borek will actually do pretty well refrigerated and reheated in an oven or toaster oven (on bake).
Armenian Cheese Borek
Ingredients
- 1 pound of phyllo dough
- 1 pound of jack cheese shredded or chopped in a food processor
- ¾ bunch of parsley
- ½ of a large yellow onion
- 1 ½ teaspoons melted salted butter
- 1 egg
- 1 ½-2 cubes of melted salted butter for brushing between layers of phyllo dough
Instructions
- Finely dice onion and parsley leaves. Shred or mince cheese in a food processor.
- Whisk an egg with a tablespoon of just-melted butter (you don't want to boil your egg).
- Stir all ingredients together (onion, parsley, jack cheese, butter and egg.)
- Unroll a defrosted package of phyllo dough. Cut the entire stack of phyllo dough sheets in half, length-wise, to make strips about 3-4" wide.
- Cover one stack with saran wrap and a wet towel, to keep moist.
- Butter one strip of phyllo dough with a pastry brush. Add another strip of phyllo dough to the top, and brush that layer with butter. Add a third strip of phyllo dough to the top, and brush the final layer with butter. You should have three sheets of phyllo dough, buttered in between.
- Add 2 tablespoons of filling in the bottom corner of your phyllo dough. Take the bottom corner of all sheets and make a diagonal fold to the other side. Continue folding using a flag roll method.
- Brush the tops and bottoms of all the boreks with butter before baking and place on a cookie sheet. (You won't need to grease the cookie sheet.)
- Bake in the middle rack at 375 degree Fahrenheit for 15-18 minutes or until lightly browned on both sides. Serve immediately.
Lorie says
I don’t understand how or what you mean by stacking phyllo dough? I’m a little confused.
The Stuffed Grape Leaf says
When you unroll the defrosted phyllo dough, it already comes stacked (sheet on top of sheet). You will cut through the entire stack lengthwise, resulting in two stacks. Here is a video I found of another cook cutting through the phyllo dough, only she cut the sheets into thirds (which I wouldn't recommend for this recipe): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdsHR2ghRx4