I use a 24 cm round tray

Tikvenik is one of my favorite winter desserts. Here I will present two versions of this pumpkin pie: with apple filling – strudel; and with pumpkin filling. I use ready-made phyllo, although if you are skillful and have the time, it is best to roll them yourself, as my grandmother did. The recipe is a vegan one (I prefer this version), but you can optionally replace the vegetable oil with diary butter.

Products:

300 g phyllo sheets; in my version, I use 8 pcs. rectangular sheets

powdered sugar for sprinkling

coconut oil for spreading the strudel/the tikvenik

for the filling:

5 apples (big and sweet), grated; or 4 cups grated pumpkin (1 cup for each pair of phyllo sheets as I roll them as a pair of two);

1 cup grinded walnuts

4 tbsps cinnamon/total (1 tbsp for each pair of phyllo sheets as I roll them as a pair of two);

12 tbsps sugar/total (3 tbsps for each pair of phyllo sheets as I roll them as a pair of two);

sunflower oil to taste, to sprinkle the phyllo sheets

Preparation:

I spread one phyllo sheet. Spray it with some sunflower oil. I place/stick a second phyllo sheet onto it. I also spray it with oil. Sprinkle it all over with grated apple, walnuts, cinnamon and sugar.

I begin to roll the paired phyllo sheets together along the two edges to meet in the middle (see the photo). Then, from the one end, I start twisting them to get the form of a snail, which I put in the center of a previously greased baking tray. This is what I do with the rest of the phyllo sheets by placing/twisting them as arcs around the central “snail” (end of each being glued/wrapped in the middle part of the next arc). If two ends meet, they will become too crispy, and what is more, the visual result would not be that satisfying after baking. That is why I leave this “overlap”.

Bake in a preheated oven at 180ᴼC until light golden brown.

Spread the top of the ready strudel with coconut oil until still hot. It will become extremely soft and smooth. Sprinkle it generously with powdered sugar.

Tips:

As I mentioned, apples could be replaced with grated pumpkin to get a wonderful aromatic Тikvenik. All other ingredients are the same, as well as the preparation.

Instead of twisting to get the form of a snail, the pairs of phyllo, glued with oil can be laid on top of each other with a filling between them in a rectangular baking tray (at the top I put a pair of phyllo sheets). I cut into squares and bake. The ready tikvenik I spread with coconut oil and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bundevara

**https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banitsa