007Courgette pie

Method

Savoury summer filo pie. Best served warm or at ambient room temperature on a hot day.

You will need

• coarse box grater
• clean tea towel
• rolling pin
• 38 x 28 cm rectangular baking dish
• pastry brush

1. Place 1.2 kg coarsely grated courgettes into a colander, toss with 1.5 tsp salt, and leave to drain for 30 minutes. 30 min Ready when: plenty of water releases from the courgettes
2. Combine 500 g plain flour with 1 tsp salt, 30 ml olive oil, and 230 ml water; knead for 8 minutes into a smooth dough, divide into 6 balls, and rest covered for 20 minutes. 28 min Ready when: dough rests and relaxes
3. Take handfuls of the salted grated courgettes and squeeze them forcefully inside a clean tea towel to extract maximum liquid, transferring the dry courgette pulp into a large mixing bowl. 5 min Ready when: courgette shreds feel dry and compressed
4. To the courgette bowl, add 4 sliced spring onions, chopped mint, chopped dill, 300 g crumbled feta, 3 beaten eggs, 50 g fine semolina, 2 tbsp olive oil, and black pepper; mix thoroughly. 3 min Ready when: filling is evenly combined with no free liquid
5. Preheat a conventional oven to 180°C (350°F) and brush a 38 x 28 cm baking pan generously with olive oil. 5 min · 180°C / 350°F Ready when: oven ready
6. Roll out 3 dough balls into very thin sheets on a floured surface, layering each into the oiled pan while brushing between layers with olive oil. 15 min Ready when: bottom pastry sheets drape over pan edges
7. Spread the courgette and feta filling evenly across the pastry base, smoothing the top with a spatula. 2 min Ready when: level filling layer
8. Roll out the remaining 3 dough balls into thin rounds, layering them over the filling while brushing each with olive oil; fold and pinch the overhanging edges inwards to form a rope-like border. 12 min Ready when: edges neatly sealed and crimped
9. Score the upper sheets into serving pieces with a knife tip without piercing the base, brush with remaining olive oil, and sprinkle lightly with water. 2 min Ready when: surface scored in clean diagonal grid
10. Bake in the lower third of the oven at 180°C (350°F) for 55 to 60 minutes until the crust is deeply golden, crisp, and pulls slightly away from the sides. 60 min · 180°C / 350°F Ready when: crust is crisp, hollow-sounding, and richly browned

Tap a step to tick it off.

Make ahead and storing

Can be assembled up to 4 hours in advance and kept chilled before baking.

Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3 days; re-crisp in an oven before serving.

Substitutions

• half feta and half fresh anthotyros or mizithra for feta. Softens the saltiness and gives a creamier texture.
• store-bought filo pastry for plain flour. Use 8 to 10 sheets of commercial filo, 4 to 5 on bottom and 4 on top.

Common mistakes

• Inadequately squeezing the grated courgettes. Courgettes release massive moisture during baking; failing to wring them out completely leaves the pie soggy and limp.
• Leaving out the semolina or starch binder. The semolina absorbs residual steam inside the pie, keeping the filling sliceable rather than watery.

Regional variants

• Batzina (Thessaly): a thin, crustless courgette bake made with a batter of flour, feta, eggs, and courgette directly in an oiled pan.
• Sweet kolokythopita (Peloponnese/Aegean): made with red pumpkin or sweet yellow squash, raisins, walnuts, and cinnamon.

About the dish

Kolokythopita celebrates the summer abundance of courgettes across Greece. It exists in two major families: crustless batter bakes (known as bousouropita, batzina, or kolokythokeftedes tou tapsiou depending on the region) and traditional pies enclosed in hand-rolled or commercial filo. In savoury iterations, grated courgette is salted, drained, and combined with brined feta, fragrant spearmint, dill, and eggs. Mainland and Aegean island cooks prize the natural sweetness of summer courgettes against salty cheese and aromatic garden mint.

Found in all of Greece. Cooked for everyday, summer.

Cousins elsewhere

• Kabaklı börek (Turkish). Börek stuffed with grated courgette, feta-like white cheese, and dill.
• Scarpazzone (Italian). Northern Italian rustic vegetable pie made with greens or summer squash in pastry.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

1079 kcal · protein 31.3 g · fat 26.2 g (saturated 8.6 g) · carbohydrate 175.8 g (sugars 5.4 g) · fibre 7.2 g · sodium 459 mg

An estimate (summed from ingredient estimates) that varies with the exact ingredients. It is not dietary advice.

Written fresh by Epikouria editors from general culinary tradition. Recipe by the Epikouria editors. Traditional summer home baking pairing fresh garden courgettes with wild mint and aged feta under hand-rolled filo..

Products for this dish