Tikvenik (Pumpkin-filled Filo Pastry) is a traditional Bulgarian recipe for a classic vegetarian pie of pumpking sweteened with sugar and mixed with walnuts that's folded in filo pastry parcels and oven baked. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Bulgarian version of: Pumpkin-filled Filo Pastry (Tikvenik).
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This is a traditional vegetarian dish for the Bulgarian Christmas feast.
Ingredients:
1.5kg pumpkin (the type used for pies), diced
200g brown sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
210g walnuts, chopped
450g filo (phyllo) pastry
100g butter, softened
Method:
Cook the pumpkin in a steamer until tender then drain and mash. Add the brown sugar and cinnamon then transfer to a pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar has dissolved. Remove from the heat then set aside to cool to room temperature.
Once cold, stir-in the walnuts. Now unfold the filo pastry. Take two sheets and dot with the butter. Spread about 100g of the pumpkin mixture across the width of one sheet. Fold over the two shorter ends then roll into a cylinder before rolling into a spiral on a greased baking sheet. Repeat the process with the remaining pumpkin and pastry, adding each roll to the end of the spiral, making it larger.
When done, brush the top with melted butter then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 210°C and bake until lightly browned (about 15 to 20 minutes). Reduce the heat to 180°C and bake for a further 40 minutes. Serve hot.
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