FLAOUNA

Ingredients:

For the dough:

1/2kg farina flour

1/2kg strong flour

1/2tsp salt

1tsp baking powder

150gr melted butter

1/2tsp masticha and machlepi, crushed

50gr Sourdough (or 10 gr Yeast)

250 ml Milk, lukewarm for kneading

For the filling:

1kg of flaouna cheese, grated fine (local spring seasonal, thick goat and sheep milk cheese)

300gr halloumi cheese, grated fine,(Cyprus white cheese made from sheep milk or goat's milk)

100gr cup semolina

6 eggs

40g sourdough

1tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp masticha and machlepi, crushed

1 cup chopped fresh mint

150 g raisins

1 egg beaten for spreading

Sesame for sprinkling

Method

My advice is to prepare the filling the night before, to give time to sourdough to get activated and the mixture to become more moisture In a bowl mix the cheese, salt, half of the beaten eggs and the sourdough, mix thoroughly, in the end add the raisins Cover it with a cloth and place in the fridge for at least 4-5 hours before baking Next morning add the rest of the eggs ,masticha, machlepi ,baking powder, semolina and mint

Next step is to prepare the dough In a large bowl sift the flour, add the salt, baking powder, the mahlab, mastic and the butter, mix sourdough and milk, knead the dough thoroughly Cover the dough mix with a cloth and let it rise for 1-2 hours or until it has almost doubled in size (If you are using yeast instead of sourdough you must dissolve yeast into milk)

3 Now its time to start assembling your flaouna! Pour the flaouna dough out of the bowl ,cut into 10 pieces and roll out into round circles Sprinkle the sesame seeds on a small plate with approximately the same size as the flaouna dough

Glaze the outer side of the flaouna dough with the whisked egg and press it down on the sesame seeds That will ensure that the seeds are firmly embedded in the dough Grab a handful of the cheese filling and form a ball Place in the centre of the dough (sesame seeds facing outwards), glaze the edges with a little more whisked egg and fold, pinching the corners together to form the flaouna shape Usually triangle, round or rectangular

Once all your flaouna are shaped, place them on a baking tray lined with grease proof paper, let them rise for about 30-45 minutes and then bake in a pre-heated oven at 200C for about 40 minutes, or until golden brown

ONE OF THE FINEST OLIVE OILS ON THE PLANET FROM SOME OF THE OLDEST OLIVE GROVES IN THE WORLD. WELCOME TO ROYAL SPARTAN OLIVE OIL

Nestled in the stunningly beautiful valley boasting a microclimate that is 700 meters above sea level, surrounded by woodlands and snow-capped mountain ranges you can find Olive trees that date back 3,000-4,000 years old

Around one thousand of these ancient trees are still producing 45,000 kg of fruits every year , all tendered by passionate artisan producers consisting of three brothers an uncle and a father!

This family business bases its product solely on quality and want to produce nothing but the finest ingredients mother nature can offer

Additionally a luxurious range of honey`s are also available such as pure Royal Fir Pearl and blueberry !

Royal spartan vanilla fir honey has a layered but mildly sweet taste, with caramel notes and fir aroma It is very viscous and has an amber, almost off-white colour with golden reflections inside It is rich in trace elements, carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids, enzymes and vitamins It is a product of certified organic / bio farming