Cooking with Toti
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Bulgarian Cheese Banitsa
A timeless Bulgarian classic — hand-stretched dough, feta, and my favorite Dutch oven method.
Serves
8–10
Time
3 hrs
Homemade banitsa with hand-stretched dough coiled into one big spiral and baked until deeply golden. My favorite way to bake it is in a Dutch oven, and it's traditionally served warm with plain Bulgarian yogurt.
Instructions
Activate the Yeast
- 1
Combine the lukewarm water and milk in a large measuring cup or deep bowl.
- 2
Add the fresh yeast, honey (or sugar), and oil.
- 3
Stir gently and let sit 10–15 minutes, until foamy and active.
Make the Dough
- 1
Sift the flour into a large bowl and mix in the salt.
- 2
Pour in the activated yeast mixture, add the egg, and mix until a soft dough forms.
- 3
Knead on a lightly floured surface for 8–10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.
- 4
Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled in size.
Prepare for Stretching
- 1
Punch down the risen dough and divide it into 7 equal pieces.
- 2
Shape each piece into a smooth ball, then flatten into a small disc.
- 3
Spread the top of each disc with a thin layer of softened butter and stack them.
- 4
Let the stacked discs rest for 10 minutes while you crumble the feta and shred the mozzarella.
Stretch, Fill & Roll
- 1
Working one disc at a time, gently stretch the dough into a very thin sheet with your hands. Small tears are completely normal.
- 2
Sprinkle with the crumbled feta, the mozzarella, or both.
- 3
Roll the dough into a long rope.
- 4
Starting in the center of your baking dish or Dutch oven, coil the rope into a spiral.
- 5
Repeat with the remaining pieces until one large spiral is formed.
Brush & Bake
- 1
Whisk together the egg and milk and brush the entire banitsa generously.
- 2
Bake at 360°F (182°C).
- 3
Toward the end, reduce to 350°F (177°C) and continue baking until golden brown and fully baked.
Toti’s Tips
- ✓Butter the bottom and sides of the Dutch oven generously. The spiral expands as it bakes and presses against the sides, and without that layer of butter the outer coil tears when you lift it out.
- ✓If your Dutch oven isn't deep, bake with the lid on for the first 15–20 minutes. The trapped steam keeps the top from touching and sticking to the lid while the banitsa is still rising.
- ✓With a regular baking dish, line it with parchment so you can lift the whole spiral out in one piece instead of cutting it in the pan.
- ✓Use softened, room-temperature butter. Cold butter drags and tears the sheets, while soft butter lets you stretch the dough thin enough to see through.
- ✓Do not skip brushing the egg and milk over the whole spiral, including down in the grooves. Those exposed edges are the parts that dry out and go pale.
- ✓Best warm, traditionally with plain Bulgarian yogurt (kiselo mlyako). The cold yogurt against the salty warm cheese is how we always ate it.
More photos
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