These delicious Apple Cinnamon Bourekas, look great and are so easy to make! Little, fluffy hand pies from the middle east, with a delectable spiced apple filling – what’s not to love!
Hi! My name is Tory Avey. I am so thrilled to be guest posting for Jaden here at Steamy Kitchen! I met Jaden at the BlogHer conference in San Diego this past summer and we became fast friends. Jaden and her website are an inspiration to many of us in the food blogging community. It’s a treat to be able to share one of my recipes with you!
Why These Apple Cinnamon Bourekas Are So Good
- A delicious Middle Eastern treat.
- Perfectly crisp.
- A warming sweet treat perfect for fall and winter.
- Fun to make, get the family involved!
Ingredients
- Baking apples
- Brown sugar
- Vanilla
- Cinnamon
- Salt
- Filo dough
- Unsalted butter
- Sugar
How To Make These Apple Cinnamon Bourekas – Step By Step
2 hours before you begin, take your filo dough out of the freezer and let it defrost. You can also let it defrost overnight in the refrigerator, if you prefer.
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees F. Cut the cored, peeled apples into very thin slices.
Place the slices in a mixing bowl along with the brown sugar, vanilla, ½ tsp of cinnamon, and salt. Toss all ingredients with a spoon till the apple slices are evenly coated. Let them macerate for a few minutes so the apples become juicy and the sugar begins to dissolve.
Lightly dampen a kitchen towel (don’t soak it!), and keep it with you as you work with the filo dough. Unroll your dough. Filo sheets come in different sizes, so you may need to cut your sheets to size get the size you need. For each boureka, you want to create a double layer of filo dough that is about 4 inches wide and 14 inches long.
Folding a smaller filo sheet (8×14) in half lengthwise is the easiest way to form this double layer.
If your filo sheets are larger, use scissors to cut the sheet in half lengthwise to make two rectangular pieces.
Then, fold each piece in half lengthwise to create the double layer of filo you need.
Keep the unused filo sheets under the damp towel as you work to keep them from drying out. Filo is very delicate and prone to ripping, so if you’ve never worked with it before, be patient… rips will happen. It takes some time to get a feel for it.
Use a pastry brush to pain a thin layer of melted butter onto the surface of the double layer filo rectangle.
Place a few slices of the apple filling in the lower left corner of the filo rectangle, following the left edge of the filo and fanning downward in a triangular shape.
Fold the lower left corner of the rectangle up and over the apple filling to form a triangle of dough.
Take the upper left and corner and fold it up and over, maintaining the triangular shape.
Continue folding the filo in the same way you would fold a flag, till the entire strip is used up and a neat triangle pastry is formed.
Place the folded boureka on an ungreased baking sheet.
Repeat process until all the filling is used up. You should end up with around 14-15 bourekas. You may need two baking sheets to fit all of the bourekas.
Brush each boureka with another thin layer of melted butter. Don’t brush it on too heavy, or the bourekas will become very greasy. Just a light layer will do it.
In a small bowl, mix together 2 tbsp of sugar and ½ tsp of cinnamon. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top of the buttered bourekas.
Place the bourekas on the middle rack of your preheated oven. Let them bake for 20-25 minutes till filo turns golden brown and the filling begins to bubble out in places. Serve warm.
What Is A Boureka?
I’d like to introduce you to the boureka—a delicious Middle Eastern hand pie. These baked, stuffed pastries are popular in Israel and throughout the Middle East. They originated in Asia as a deep-fried filled dumpling known as a burga. When the Turks of central Asia moved to what is now the country of Turkey, they brought their stuffed burga dumplings with them. Over time, the dumpling evolved into a variety of stuffed, layered pastries known as börek. Sephardic Jews who settled in Turkey adopted the pastry, merging it with their version of the same dish (empanada) and adapting it to make it kosher. Börek + empanada = boureka. The boureka was born!
Sweet Bourekas
Today bourekas are usually made savory, with fillings like meat or cheese. Recently, I wondered what it might be like to stuff them with sweet pie-like fillings. The experiment paid off; I ended up with Apple Cinnamon Bourekas, a delicate, flaky dessert just perfect for winter. With the holidays approaching, these sweet little baked bourekas are a seasonal treat. They’d make a great addition to a holiday buffet. Now that you know the history behind the dish, perhaps you’ll enjoy them even more!
Get Friends And Family Involved!
Middle Eastern cooking brings friends and family together, and these bourekas are no exception! Make a big batch by making a little production line, have your team fill and fold the bourekas, only a quick bake and they’ll be ready to eat!
Top Tips For These Bourekas
- Golden delicious, Fuji or Gravensteins are great for this.
- You just need a thin coating of butter on the bourekas, not too thick or they’ll be too greasy.
- Use a preheated oven.
- Get friends and family involved for a big batch!
Check Out These Other Sweet Treats
- Negative Calorie Chocolate Cake
- Chocolate Cake S’mores Cookies
- Peanut Butter Pie & a Pie for Mikey
- Nutella Bread Pudding
Have you tried these Apple Cinnamon Bourekas? Feel free to leave a star rating and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
Apple Cinnamon Bourekas
Ingredients
- 1 lb. baking apples Golden Delicious, Gravenstein or Fuji, cored and peeled
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tsp cinnamon divided
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 1 package filo dough
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 2 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- 2 hours before you begin, take your filo dough out of the freezer and let it defrost. You can also let it defrost overnight in the refrigerator, if you prefer.
- Preheat your oven to 325F. Cut the cored, peeled apples into very thin slices.
- Place the slices in a mixing bowl along with the brown sugar, vanilla, ½ tsp of cinnamon, and salt. Toss all ingredients with a spoon till the apple slices are evenly coated. Let them macerate for a few minutes so the apples become juicy and the sugar begins to dissolve.
- Lightly dampen a kitchen towel (don’t soak it!), and keep it with you as you work with the filo dough. Unroll your dough. Filo sheets come in different sizes, so you may need to cut your sheets to size get the size you need. For each boureka, you want to create a double layer of filo dough that is about 4 inches wide and 14 inches long.
- Folding a smaller filo sheet (8x14) in half lengthwise is the easiest way to form this double layer.
- If your filo sheets are larger, use scissors to cut the sheet in half lengthwise to make two rectangular pieces.
- Then, fold each piece in half lengthwise to create the double layer of filo you need.
- Keep the unused filo sheets under the damp towel as you work to keep them from drying out. Filo is very delicate and prone to ripping, so if you’ve never worked with it before, be patient… rips will happen. It takes some time to get a feel for it.
- Use a pastry brush to pain a thin layer of melted butter onto the surface of the double layer filo rectangle.
- Place a few slices of the apple filling in the lower left corner of the filo rectangle, following the left edge of the filo and fanning downward in a triangular shape.
- Fold the lower left corner of the rectangle up and over the apple filling to form a triangle of dough.
- Take the upper left and corner and fold it up and over, maintaining the triangular shape.
- Continue folding the filo in the same way you would fold a flag, till the entire strip is used up and a neat triangle pastry is formed.
- Place the folded boureka on an ungreased baking sheet.
- Repeat process until all the filling is used up. You should end up with around 14-15 bourekas. You may need two baking sheets to fit all of the bourekas.
- Brush each boureka with another thin layer of melted butter. Don’t brush it on too heavy, or the bourekas will become very greasy. Just a light layer will do it.
- In a small bowl, mix together 2 tbsp of sugar and ½ tsp of cinnamon. Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the top of the buttered bourekas.
- Place the bourekas on the middle rack of your preheated oven. Let them bake for 20-25 minutes till filo turns golden brown and the filling begins to bubble out in places. Serve warm.
Did you try this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the recipe card below and leave a review in the comment section! I always appreciate your feedback and I know other readers do, too!
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Had to increase the temp to 350!
Added fresh ground nutmeg,1 tsp lempn juice to the apples,Â
Light crispy and yummy!
Thanks
Was the vanilla supposed to be coming out if the pastry?
This recipe was absolutely amazing! my whole family loved them, pretty easy to make compared to other recipes. (at least ones I’ve tried) amazing flavor! definitely a keeper
Thank you Joanne! – Jaden
I made these tonight for tomorrow’s breakfast. They are cooling now. Any tips for storage? Fridge vs. Room temp?
Hi Rachel, Store overnight in a Tupperware container with lid, room temp is fine for a couple of days. Reheat in toaster oven.
So easy (other than slicing the apple).! When I come to Steamy Kitchen I always seem to find recipes that turn out well, have an aura of sophistication about them, but are not intimidating to fix. Â Even a recipe from a guest turns out well. I recommend this site to everyone who loves good food.
Those look delicious and beautiful,i will made them with bit alteration, will add some walnuts with apples,Thanks for sharing
Can anyone tell me how to make ahead and freeze? I’m assuming freeze unbaked but then how long to cook from frozen? Do I need to thaw first? Any help appreciated. Thanks!Â
Kelly – freeze, unbaked. To bake, do not thaw – but bake while still frozen. Bake for 30 minutes.
Just stumbled over this blog searching for apple and filo recipes. Just made a batch and they were delicious! Yes they are like apple turnovers as someone commented, but much lighter and a bit more refined and would definitely be a fab dessert with homemade vanilla ice cream. Ace recipe thank you.
Thank you Tracy!
I made these one night and drizzled caramel sauce on them and they are amazing. They didn’t make it until the morning. Even my picky kids gobbled them up.
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Making good bourekas is reel art! In my country this is almost traditional food! Really nice post
My aunt made the best bourek when I was a kid, filled with dates and nuts and spices, drizzled with a sweet syrup. I could eat a mountain of them! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
These apple cinnamon bourekas look very tasty. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Good looking desserts and I agree these could be great for a dinner party! Or even an appetizer at a group gathering such as a work functioning, which I happen to have often. Thanks for posting this!
These look like wonderful little desserts! Great for a dinner party 🙂
Jaden I am so happy to see Tori here. I love this girl to pieces. She is such a delight. So big thanks for sharing her with your readers.
Tori this is a lovely recipe. Seems simple enough for even me to make. I just learned to use filo this year and love all the stuff you can do with it. This recipe is incredible.
We immigrated to the US from Croatia when I was 15. I still remember bureks, a flaky pastry stuffed with meat or veggies.
Perfect! I have some filo dough sitting in my fridge just waiting to be made up into a special treat! I think I will make this for a party this weekend… Thanks!
These little pillows look perfect for something I was working on for this weekend. A little drizzle of caramel sauce would be awesome also.
These look even more delicious than a traditional apple pie. Is the dough hard to work with?
These are called turnovers. LOL – anthropologist??
Oh these look so delicious! What a great way to top off a meal!
So great to see you two teaming up, my two favorite bloggers! Great looking recipe, Tori. 🙂
wow, those look delicious and beautiful. Thanks for sharing Tori’s blog – it’s a great new find for me 🙂
I bet these would freeze (unbaked) really well too. I saw them and thought of breakfast so having a secret stash in the freezer would be awesome.