Greek Pumpkin Hand Pies - Kolokithopita (Vegan, No Mixer)
Kolokithopita is Greek pumpkin pie. These Greek pumpkin hand pies are shaped into pretty spirals. They're easy and don’t require a mixer!
Servings 7
Ingredients
- 3 ½ cups (14 oz / 400 g) freshly grated pumpkin, squeezed to remove excess water
- 7 phyllo dough sheets (about 8 oz / 225 g)
- ¼ cup (60 ml) olive oil
- ¼ cup (60 g) sugar
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
- powdered sugar and ground cinnamon for dusting (optional)
Instructions
- Generously grease a pan with olive oil. Alternatively, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly grease it with olive oil. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 180 °C / 350 °F.
- Put the shredded pumpkin in a bowl.
- Add the sugar and the spices and mix with a spoon until everything is combined. Discard any liquid that remains in the bowl or put the filling in a a fine mesh strainer.
- Place a sheet of phyllo dough on a work surface (the long edge facing you) and drizzle with some olive oil. Cover the other sheets with a damp towel so that they don’t dry out.
- Spread 2 tablespoons of the pumpkin filling lengthwise, starting about 2 inches (5 cm) from the bottom and the sides.
- Fold the left and right edge of the phyllo dough over the filling.
- Fold over the bottom part of the phyllo dough and roll into a log, starting from the bottom.
- Starting at one end, loosely roll the log into a spiral.
- Place the hand pie in the baking pan and brush with olive oil.
- Repeat with the remaining 6 sheets and filling.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Picture Tutorial & Tips: I have a detailed picture tutorial in my post to help you out with each step of the recipe as well as lots of tips to ensure success.
- Use a clean kitchen towel to squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Any excess water can make the hand pies soggy.
- Try and work as quickly as you can because the phyllo dough can dry out fast!
- Don’t coil the pies too tightly, otherwise the centers won’t bake evenly.
- Whenever I bake with phyllo dough, I don’t usually line my pan with parchment paper; I just oil it with olive oil. If you want to make cleanup easier, though, you could line your pan with parchment paper before baking.
- The baking time will depend on how much moisture is in your pumpkin. It usually takes around 50 minutes, but it could take up to an hour and ten minutes. Keep an eye on it after 45 minutes.
