Phyllo Feta Cheesecake
Ingredients:
450 g Crystal Valley feta cheese; crumbled
360 g creamed cottage cheese
3 large eggs
20 g fresh dill; chopped
20 g origanum leaves; removed from stems
4 tbsp. finely grated Grana Padano Quattro Colli (or Parmesan)
½ tsp. nutmeg; freshly grated
½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
12 sheets phyllo pastry
300 g unsalted butter; melted
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 190 °C.
2. Combine the feta, cottage cheese, eggs, dill and origanum.
Half the grated Grana Padano, nutmeg and pepper and pulse to just combined. (You can also use a large bowl and a fork to mix it – the mixture should still be a bit chunky and not too smooth.)
3. Sprinkle remaining 2 tbsp. Grana Padano into a Bundt pan.
4. Drape a sheet of phyllo on top of the Bundt pan, poke a hole into the phyllo where the centre tube is. Push phyllo into the pan to line it.
5. The edges of the phyllo sheets should hang over the edges of the pan.
6. Do this with another phyllo sheet, but place it at a 90-degree angle to the first sheet.
7. Continue adding phyllo sheets in this criss-cross manner until all sheets are used.
8. Spoon the cheese filling into the pan and fold the edges of the phyllo over the filling.
9. Using a sharp knife, poke 20 holes through the cake that reach all the way to the bottom of the pan.
10. Slowly pour melted butter over the cake. Some butter will seep through the holes and some will remain on top of the dough.
11. Place the Bundt pan on a baking sheet and bake for about 1 hr 15 min., until the cake is puffy and golden brown.
12. Gently pour out any excess butter once you’ve removed it from the oven. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for at least 1 hr before inverting onto a plate and slicing.
13. Serve slightly warm.
