🍊 Portokalopita
Portokalopita is a Greek orange cake made not with flour but with dried, crumbled phyllo pastry, soaked in a batter of yogurt, eggs, sugar and fresh orange, then baked and drenched in an orange syrup with cinnamon. The texture is moist and custardy with a light crunch at the edges, and the flavour is bright and citrusy. It is served in squares, often chilled.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 450 g phyllo pastry
- 250 g Greek yogurt
- 3 eggs
- 300 g sugar (150 g for batter, 150 g for syrup)
- 3 oranges (zest and juice)
- 120 ml sunflower oil
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 250 ml water
Method
- Make the syrup: simmer the water, 150 g sugar, juice of 1 orange, some peel and the cinnamon stick for 5 minutes; let it cool.
- Tear the phyllo into pieces, spread on trays and let dry for 1–2 hours or dry in a 120 °C oven for 15 minutes.
- Whisk the eggs with 150 g sugar, then add the yogurt, oil, the remaining orange zest and juice, and the baking powder.
- Fold in the crumbled phyllo, pour into an oiled 25 × 35 cm tin and bake at 180 °C for 40–45 minutes until golden.
- Pour the cooled syrup over the hot cake and let it soak for at least 1 hour before cutting.
How to make it lighter
- Cut 12 squares; one square is a satisfying dessert portion.
- Use half the syrup quantity; the cake stays moist with less.
- Serve with fresh orange segments rather than ice cream.
History
Portokalopita is a home-style dessert popular throughout Greece; it is often described as a newer recipe that spread widely in recent decades. Its use of shredded phyllo is a practical way to use up leftover pastry.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →