Recipe - Birds Nests With Cheese

FILLING
2 Eggs, lightly beaten
One half cup Cheese, parmesan, grated
2 tablespoon Cheese, ricotta
2 teaspoon Mint, fresh, chopped OR
One half teaspoon Mint, dried
1 pn Pepper, black, ground

PASTRY AND GARNISH
8 Pastry, phyllo, sheets
One half cup Butter, clarified **
Three fourths cup Cheese, Kasseri, crumbled OR
Three fourths cup Cheese, feta, crumbled
8 Olives, calamata (garnish)

** See "Clarified Butter" recipe.

Filling:
========

In mixing bowl, combine eggs, Parmesan, ricotta, mint and pepper.
Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Cut phyllo pastry sheets in half crosswise and cover with waxed
paper and a lightly dampened kitchen towel.

Place 2 half sheets of phyllo, one on top of the other,
horizontally on a work surface, trim off and discard a 1 inch strip
from 1 short edge of sheets.

Pull top sheet toward you so that it overlaps bottom sheet by
about 1 One half inches. Dot exposed surfaces with clarified butter.

Place a One half inch diameter dowel or no. 11 knitting needle about
1 One half inches from long edge farthest from you. Fold edge over dowel.

Spread about 1 teaspoon of filling along edge of folded flap.

Fold dowel over filling; then carefully roll up phyllo toward
you, leaving 1 One half inch strip at bottom edge.

Holding edges of the pastry at ends of dowel, gently press them
toward center, forming pleats as you would on a curtain rod.

(Do not worry if some filling oozes out.)

Firmly holding ends of pastry to maintain pleats, carefully pull
out dowel. Bring rolled edges of pastry around, forming a circle; the
unrolled border will form bottom of each bird's nest.

Transfer bird's nest to ungreased baking sheet. Brush all
exposed surfaces of pastry generously with clarified butter. Bake
until golden, about 15 minutes.

Remove baking sheet from oven and place about 1 One half tablespoons
of Kasseri in center of each nest. Return to oven until cheese is
bubbly. 3 to 4 minutes.

Place an olive in center of each nest.

Serve hot.

Source: New York's Master Chefs, Bon Appetit Magazine
: Written by Richard Sax, Photographs by Nancy McFarland
: The Knapp Press, Los Angeles, 1985

Chef: Andree Abramoff, Andree's Mediterranean Restaurant, New York

File ftp://ftp.idiscover.co.uk/pub/food/mealmaster/recipes/mmgcny.zip