This recipe is purely Greek but the way we use the whole lemons (and very little sugar) gives a very intense lemony flavor, as if it comes from northern Europe. If you want to give it a sweeter flavor (especially if it’s for children) you may add extra sugar!
Ingredients
For the base-
,
- 5 lemons ,
- 1 packagefilo pastry ,
- 250 g. vegetable Oil ,
- 250 g. granulated sugar ,
- 250 g. milk (at least 3.5% fat) ,
- 2 tsp vanilla extract ,
- 3 eggs ,
- 1 tsp baking power ,
- 1 tsp baking soda
-
,
- 700 g. granulated sugar ,
- 500 g. water
Instructions
For the syrup-
,
- Boil water with sugar in a pot. ,
- When sugar is completely dissolved anδ the syrup reaches the boiling point, remove from heat and add the juice of 3 lemons. ,
- Allow to cool.
-
,
- Boil two lemons in water for 45 minutes, cut them in half, remove seeds and squeeze to remove most of the fluids. ,
- Whisk lemon in a blender until it gets a paste like texture and keep it aside in a bowl. ,
- Squeeze the juice from the remaining 3 lemons and get the zest from one of them. ,
- Arrange the philo sheets one next to another on the table and let them dry, a process that can take from 1-3 hours. ,
- They are ready when they are completely dry. ,
- Break them in small pieces with your hands ,
- Mix the paste you made with the 2 lemons with all remaining ingredients except from the philo sheets. ,
- Add the baking powder and baking soda at the end and be careful not to beat thoroughly. ,
- Pour the mixture into a bowl and add in the smashed philo sheets, stirring thoroughly with a spatula. Make sure that the sheets will not stick together. ,
- Butter a baking dish 25x30 cm and cover with flour. ,
- Transfer the mixture in the pan and use a spatula to straighten it. ,
- Bake in preheated oven at 160 for 40 minutes or until it gets a nice golden color ,
- As soon as you take it out of the oven pour in the cold syrup. ,
- Allow to cool down out and then put it in the fridge for at least 3 hours. ,
- When cool serve with ice cream.
