Traditional salty Easter small pies 

Ingredients for 23 pieces, every sheet approximately 18-20 g

For the dough:*

• 240 g all-purpose flour
• 136 g water
• 16 g olive oil
• 2 g salt
• Extra flour for rolling out the dough

For the filling:

approximately 16–17 g per small pie

• 380 g mizithra cheese from Chania (sour mizithra or a creamy cheese made from goat and sheep's milk combined with some crumbled feta)*
• 2 egg yolks
• 30 g fresh spearmint leaves
• A little pepper

For the topping:

• The egg whites from the eggs used in the filling
• A little evaporated milk approximately 20 g
• Black sesame seeds (nigella seeds)
• Sesame seeds
• Fresh bitter orange leaves*

With malaka* cheese (Cretan soft cheese):

For 13 pieces:

For the dough:

 16–17 g per piece, the same goes for the sheets and the filling

• 120 g all-purpose flour
• 68 g water
• 8 g olive oil
• 1 g salt

For the filling:

• 110 g mizithra cheese
• 80 g malaka cheese
• 15 g fresh spearmint leaves
• 1 egg yolk
• A little pepper

For the topping:

• The egg white from the egg used in the filling
• A little evaporated milk approximately 10 g
• Black sesame seeds (nigella seeds)
• Sesame seeds
• Fresh bitter orange or myrtle leaves

For a lighter filling:

• 110 g mizithra cheese
• 80 g anthotyro
• 15 g fresh spearmint leaves
• 1 egg yolk
• A little pepper

Baking in a moderately preheated oven for 30–40 minutes, until they get a light golden color on top.

Instructions:

We start with the bitter orange leaves, which we wash in cold water. If you have doubts, you can add a little vinegar, even though they are fresh and clean during this season. We drain them well and place them on a baking tray with plenty of kitchen paper between them so they can dry. We keep them away from the kitchen in a cool place, so they don't wilt from the oven's heat. In a bowl, we add the water, oil, and salt and mix gently to dissolve the salt. We add the flour and knead well. It will become a soft dough. We set it aside and start the filling. We have washed and dried the spearmint (preferably the day before).

After we wash it, we shake it well to remove any excess water, wrap it as gently as possible in plenty of kitchen paper, place it in a food bag, and store it in the fridge.

It's best if the kitchen paper and the bag are not too warm, because warm air will get trapped inside the bag and the spearmint could turn black.

Careful - only the leaves, not the stems. We cut them as finely as possible. We place them in a bowl. We add the yolks, pepper and mizithra cheese and mix well. We set it aside. We divide the dough into two parts.

We roll out the dough. At first, with little to no extra flour. We only add a lot of extra flour when we start wrapping it around the rolling pin. With each roll, we gently press from the center toward the edges, making the proper hand movements. We roll out a thin sheet of dough, adding extra flour each time we roll.

Using an 11cm cookie cutter or a tea saucer and a dough cutter, we cut the dough into circles. We place the filling in the center and press lightly. We fold the dough toward the center, leaving the center uncovered, and press at four points around it to seal it. We try to keep the four corners standing upright. We place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper. We mix the egg white with the milk and brush the small pies with it. We add a bit of black sesame seeds in the center and then plenty of regular sesame seeds.

We bake them in a moderately preheated oven for 30–40 minutes until they turn lightly golden.

Once baked, while still warm, we place them in a bowl layered with bitter orange leaves. (If they still have water on them, lightly pat them dry.)

Cover them with paper or a cloth.

Traditionally, they are made on the morning of Holy Saturday.

So by Resurrection night, they have absorbed all the aromas

For the filling with malaka cheese

We repeat the same process for the dough

For the filling

We add the spearmint, egg yolk, pepper, and mizithra cheese to a bowl.

We grate the malaka cheese and add it to the rest of the ingredients mixing everything well..

With feta cheese and cream cheese from sheep and goat's milk

For 13 pieces:

For the dough:

16–17 g per piece, the same goes for the sheets and the filling

• 120 g all-purpose flour
• 68 g water
• 8 g olive oil
• 1 g salt

For the filling:

• 110 gr feta cheese made from sheep and goat's milk
• 80 g cream cheese from sheep and goat's milk
• 15 g fresh spearmint leaves
• 1 egg yolk
• A little pepper