Tikvenik 🥧 Bulgarian Pumpkin Phyllo 🇧🇬 (Pumpkin Strudel)

Description

Buttery, shattery phyllo wrapped around sweet grated pumpkin, walnuts, and cinnamon—cozy bakery perfume in every slice. 🎃🥮

Hook: Pre-cook the pumpkin so the phyllo stays crisp—golden, laminated sheets and jammy filling in under an hour. ⚡

Ingredients

• Phyllo & Fats
• 📜 Phyllo sheets: 400–450 g (16–18 sheets / 14–16 oz)
• 🫒 Sunflower oil (for brushing; or mix with melted butter): 120 ml (½ cup / 4 fl oz)
• 🧈 Melted butter (optional, richer): 40 g (3 tbsp / 1.4 oz)
• Filling
• 🎃 Pumpkin, peeled & coarsely grated: 800 g (5½ cups / 1.76 lb)
• 🍬 Sugar: 120–150 g (½–¾ cup / 4.2–5.3 oz) — adjust to pumpkin sweetness
• 🌰 Walnuts, finely chopped: 100 g (1 cup / 3.5 oz)
• 🌾 Fine semolina (or dry breadcrumbs): 20 g (2 tbsp / 0.7 oz)
• 🌿 Ground cinnamon: 5 g (2 tsp / 0.18 oz)
• 🍇 Raisins (optional, soaked & drained): 60 g (½ cup / 2.1 oz)
• 🍊 Orange zest (optional): 1 tsp (2 g / 0.07 oz)
• 🧂 Salt: 1 g (⅛ tsp / 0.04 oz)
• Finish
• 🍯 Honey or powdered sugar (serving): to taste
• 🍋 Lemon wedge (optional, to brighten slices): 1

Preparation

1. 1️⃣ Pre-cook filling: In a wide pan, cook 🎃 grated pumpkin with 🍬 sugar and 🧂 salt over medium 8–10 min, stirring, until it softens and most moisture evaporates. Off heat; stir in 🌰 walnuts, 🌿 cinnamon, 🌾 semolina, 🍇 raisins, and 🍊 zest. Cool to lukewarm.
2. 2️⃣ Prep phyllo: Heat oven to 190°C / 375°F. Brush a 30×40 cm / 12×16 in pan with a little 🫒 oil/🧈 butter.
3. 3️⃣ Rolls: Lay 2 sheets 📜 phyllo, brush lightly with fat. Scatter a thin, even layer of pumpkin mix (about 1/8 of filling). Roll up from the long edge into a log; coil into the pan or arrange logs side by side. Repeat to use all sheets/filling.
4. 4️⃣ Top & bake: Brush the tops generously with remaining fat. Bake 30–40 min until deep golden and crisp.
5. 5️⃣ Serve: Rest 10 min. Drizzle a thread of 🍯 honey or dust with powdered sugar. Slice warm or at room temp.

Total Time

🕒 Prep: 20 min
🔥 Cook: 30–40 min
⏳ Total: 50–60 min

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