Page 149 - Pie Squared

another piece of phyllo, add butter to glue it together, and soldier on.
It’s delicious every single time. That said, there are some tricks to

help you keep your cool when working with this dough.
Phyllo sheets are available in two sizes, but the smaller, 9- by 14-
inch sheets, are best suited for the slab pie pan. If you can only find
the 14- by 18-inch sheets, use kitchen scissors or a long sharp knife

to cut them in half along the 18-inch edge. Phyllo demands we plan
ahead: The resulting pastry is well worth it. Defrost a 16-ounce
package of phyllo dough in the refrigerator for one full day (24
hours). There is no way to speed up this process. Do not leave the

dough out on the counter to defrost; it will become gummy and
difficult to work with.
Make the layers as quickly as possible, keeping the phyllo
covered with a sheet of plastic wrap and a slightly damp cotton

kitchen towel on top of the plastic wrap while buttering.