This Honey Pie smells like Sunday mornings in the countryside. Warm semolina custard made with goat's milk, honey, and sweet aromas of orange and vanilla, crispy phyllo, topped with sticky honey, a sprinkle of cinnamon, and ground walnuts.
This Honey Pie (Melopita in Greek) is rustic, sweet, and utterly comforting. It's made without refined sugar, just honey.
Table Of Contents
The Custard
The custard cream for this Melopita (Honey Pie) is made with goat's milk, which gives a sweet, lighter cream. Also, instead of flour or cornstarch, it is made with fine semolina (like Galatopita). The semolina adds a fluffy texture to the custard cream, making it more flavorful and filling.
To make this delicious, old-fashioned custard cream, first heat the milk with honey, vanilla, and orange zest. Once steaming hot, pour it slowly into the beaten eggs, whisking constantly to prevent curdling.
Next, add the semolina and keep whisking the cream until it thickens.
Making The Phyllo Base
The phyllo base is made with four phyllo sheets, laid one on top of the other. Each one is brushed lightly with butter and then ruffled over the cream on the sides to create a beautifully crisp pie edge.
Alternative Pie Base Suggestion: You can use a sheet of puff pastry and trim it as necessary to fit the pan on the sides, in case you prefer not to work with phyllo.
Which Honey To Use
Thyme Honey (affiliate link) is the classic option for making a Honey Pie. Flower honey is also good. If you're looking for something fancier, try Heather Honey (affiliate link), which boasts a toffee-like, sticky texture and deep, aromatic, and intense flavor.
How Much Honey?
In this recipe, I'm using a lot of honey. So, if you're using a good-quality, expensive honey, you can skip the honey in the cream and use either maple syrup, molasses, or even brown sugar or coconut sugar (again, 140 grams / 5 ounces of each). Then use the raw honey on top of the pie when serving (150 grams of it).
Serve With
Serve this rustic Honey Pie warm, topped with ground walnuts and ground cinnamon. Or use any other ground nuts you prefer, like pecans, almonds, or pistachios. Or even sesame seeds.
A scoop of whipped cream, Greek yogurt, or vanilla ice cream can add freshness and make it taste even more heavenly!
Similar Greek Recipes To Try:
Recipe
Greek Honey Custard Pie with Crispy Phyllo
Ingredients
For The Cream:
- 1 liter (4 cups) goat milk or plain cows milk
- 140 grams (5 ounces) honey
- 3 large eggs
- 120 grams (4.2 ounces) fine semolina
- ½ orange zested
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For The Phyllo Base:
- 4 phyllo pastry sheets
- 70 grams (5 tablespoons) butter melted
For The Top:
- 150 grams (5.3 ounces) honey
- 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ground walnuts
Instructions
- Heat milk, honey (140 grams), vanilla, and orange zest in a medium-sized cooking pot over moderate heat until steaming hot.
- Beat eggs in a bowl and set aside.
- Pour the hot milk into the eggs very slowly. Small drops at a time while whisking the eggs constantly.
- Transfer back to the pot. Once you have added at least half of the milk to the eggs, transfer everything back to the pot.
- Add the semolina and keep whisking until bubbles start to form on the surface. At this point, the cream will start to thicken. Cook for 1-2 minutes more, until the cream has thickened sufficiently. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 170°C / 340°F.
- Prepare the pan. Brush a 12-inch round baking pan with melted butter.
- Take 1 phyllo pastry sheet and cover the bottom of the pan. Brush the phyllo with butter. (The phyllo will hang out of the pan on one side.)
- Add 3 more phyllo sheets the same way. Brushing each one with butter and ensuring that the bottom of the pan is covered on all sides.
- Add the cream and spread it evenly with a spoon. Take the excess phyllo that hangs out of the pan and roll/fold it inward on top of the cream. To create a ruffled pie edge. Brush the phyllo edge with butter gently, and add any remaining butter on the surface of the cream.
- Bake for approximately 30 minutes. Until both the phyllo and the cream get a nice golden brown color, and the cream appears to have set when you shake the pan.
- Let the pie sit for at least an hour at room temperature to set and cool a bit.
- Top with honey (150 grams), ground cinnamon, and ground walnuts (or other nuts of your preference).
- Serve warm, cutting it into 8 large pieces
Leave a Reply