Portokalopita (Greek Orange Phyllo Cake)

La storia di questo piatto

Portokalópita means simply 'orange pie', a humble Greek name for a cake that tradition ties to Crete, Roumeli and Thessaly, though its true origin stays unwritten; the Byzantine tale is only folk belief. The yogurt-and-fillo version we know belongs to home notebooks after the 1950s and 60s: paper-thin pastry turned into a cake, a household invention more than an ancient rite.

Ingredienti

• 400 g Phyllo dough
• 250 g Whole Greek yogurt
• 3 pieces Eggs
• 130 g Granulated sugar (for the batter)
• 100 ml Vegetable oil (for the batter)
• 2 tablespoon Vegetable oil (1 tablespoon for the crumbled phyllo, optional; 1 tablespoon for greasing the pan)
• 5 pieces Untreated oranges (about 5, depending on yield: 3 for the syrup with 150 ml of juice + peel strips; 2 for the batter with about 2 tablespoons of grated zest + about 100 ml of juice)
• 12 g Baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch Fine salt
• 160 g Granulated sugar (for the syrup)
• 150 ml Water (for the syrup)
• 1 piece Cinnamon stick

Preparazione

1. The first secret of this cake is dry phyllo. If using frozen phyllo, thaw it in the refrigerator the night before. Quick method: spread the open, separated sheets on baking trays and bake at 150°C for 10 minutes, then turn off the oven and let them cool for 10 minutes: they should become as brittle as old paper and snap with a light crack. Then remove the trays from the oven; you will turn the oven back on to 180°C in step 5. Alternatively, the more traditional version air-dries the sheets for 8-12 hours: spread the sheets the night before and leave them out until morning (with only 20 minutes in the air, industrial phyllo rarely becomes dry enough). If they remain soft the batter will be sticky, so extend the drying time.
2. Prepare the syrup first so it has time to cool. Before squeezing, use a vegetable peeler to remove a few wide strips of zest from one orange, without the white pith. Then juice the oranges (about 3) until you have 150 ml of juice; if there is juice left over, set it aside to adjust the syrup in step 3.
3. In a small saucepan combine 160 g of sugar, 150 ml of water, the 150 ml of juice, the cinnamon stick and the zest strips. Bring to a boil over medium heat and simmer for 10-12 minutes, until it just coats the spoon. Taste: it should be sweet but lively; if it tastes flat, add a splash of fresh juice.
4. Turn off the heat and leave the cinnamon in the syrup. Let it cool completely, about 40 minutes: to speed things up you can immerse the saucepan in a basin of cold water or refrigerate it. The saucepan should feel cold to the touch, not lukewarm. Meanwhile, crumble the dry phyllo (400 g) by hand into irregular pieces, the size of flakes rather than powder, directly into a large bowl. If you like, drizzle it with 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil (optional, not classic) and toss with your fingers so each fragment is lightly coated in fat. Set aside.
5. Preheat the oven to 180°C static and let it heat up while you prepare the batter (about 15 minutes). Grease a 24 cm round cake pan with solid sides, not a springform, with 1 tablespoon of oil, otherwise the syrup will leak out.
6. In another bowl, whip the 3 eggs with 130 g of sugar and the pinch of salt with a whisk for about 4 minutes, until the mixture is pale, frothy and leaves a ribbon when you lift the whisk.
7. Take the remaining 2 oranges, still whole: grate the zest of both (about 2 tablespoons in total), then juice them and measure about 100 ml of juice. Add the zest and juice to the eggs. Add the Greek yogurt (250 g), 100 ml of vegetable oil, the baking powder and the ground cinnamon, and whisk until smooth and fragrant.
8. Pour the cream over the crumbled phyllo only once the oven is at temperature, and fold in gradually with a spatula using wide, gentle movements, until every flake is moistened and no dry lumps remain. Transfer the mixture to the greased pan and level it with the back of a spoon without pressing down.
9. Bake on the middle rack at 180°C for 45-50 minutes: the surface should be golden and amber and a toothpick inserted in the center should come out dry. If the surface darkens too quickly, after 30 minutes cover it with aluminum foil.
10. As soon as it comes out of the oven, while the cake is still hot and intact in the pan, slowly ladle the cold syrup (without the cinnamon and zest) over the entire surface, waiting for it to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful. The gentle sizzle is the temperature shock: the cake drinks the syrup and stays soft without falling apart.
11. Let the cake rest in the pan at room temperature for at least 1 hour, so the syrup spreads all the way through. Only after resting, cut it into squares or diamonds and serve with a spoonful of Greek yogurt on the side, the traditional fresh contrast.