Ingredients

For the dough

• 250 g water
• 90 g olive oil
• 25 g raki (or tsipouro or ouzo)
• 1 pinch salt
• 550 g all-purpose flour + extra for rolling out the dough

For the filling

• 250 g fresh mizithra cheese, crumbled with your fingers
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried mint or 10 fresh leaves, finely chopped
• 50 g milk (if the mizithra is too dry)  

To assemble

• olive oil, for the frying
• honey with Mint essential oil Gaidarakos, to serve

Instructions

For the dough

• Add all of the ingredients in a large, plastic bowl except for the flour.
• Mix them well with a spoon and then, slowly add the flour. Firstly mix with a spoon and then with your hands, until you get a soft dough that doesn’t stick.
• Add it to the bowl, cover it with a towel, and set it onto the counter or refrigerate for one hour to rest.

For the filling

• Mix all of the ingredients into a bowl, except for the milk. You want to get a malleable filling.
• In case the mizithra is a bit dry, add the milk little by little, until you get the desired consistency.

To assemble

• With a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a 1-2 mm sheet, by dusting with flour to prevent it from sticking.
• With a cookie cutter or a glass, cut round discs of 7-8 cm diameter.
• Divide the filling to the discs with a small spoon, and fold them in half to create half-moons.
• With a fork, press the join well so that the cheese pies will not open up while being fried.
• In case that the dough does not stick to the join, spread with a little water and press with the fork.
• Add the oil into a large frying pan, let it get very hot, and fry for 2 minutes on each side until they turn nicely golden.
• Drain them onto kitchen paper and serve them with honey Gaidarakos.