Enjoyed everywhere in Malta as a snack anytime of the day. Pastizzi can be made with a variety of fillings sweet and savoury. The two most popular are this one with cheese or my favourite, curried pea.
On a recent out-of-season visit to Malta I was wandering around early one Sunday morning looking for somewhere to have coffee and breakfast. Nowhere was open. Getting desperate I spotted a rather seedy looking café just opening. They only served coffee and freshly baked pastizzi. It turned out to be the best pastizzi I’ve ever eaten. Not surprisingly we discovered it was very popular with the local fisherman who duly arrived fresh from unloading their catch for the perfect Maltese breakfast.
The recipe below will make 20 pastizzi.
Ingredients:
300g fresh ricotta cheese
2/3 cup coarsely grated mozzarella cheese
½ cup finely grated parmesan
2 eggs lightly beaten
4 sheets frozen puff pastry, partly thawed
Step 1
Place ricotta in a bowl. Using a fork, mash until almost smooth. Add mozzarella and parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Add half the egg. Stir to combine.
Step 2
Preheat oven to 220C/200C fan-forced. Line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
Step 3
Using a 10cm round cutter, cut 5 rounds from each pastry sheet. Brush edge of rounds with egg. Spoon 1 level tablespoon mixture onto centre of each round. Spread to a 5cm log. Fold up 2 sides of pastry to enclose log. Pinch to seal. Twist ends to form points. Place on prepared trays. Brush with remaining egg.
Step 4
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden and puffed. Stand for 4 minutes before serving.
Recipe courtesy of taste.com.au
