Tiropita or tyropita (

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: τυρóπιτα, "cheese-pie") is a

pastry Pastry refers to a variety of Dough, doughs (often enriched with fat or eggs), as well as the sweet and savoury Baking, baked goods made from them. The dough may be accordingly called pastry dough for clarity. Sweetened pastries are often descr ...

made with layers of buttered

phyllo Filo or phyllo is a very thin Leavening agent, unleavened dough used for making pastries such as baklava and ''börek'' in Middle Eastern cuisine, Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisines. Filo-based pastries are made by layering many sheets of filo ...

and filled with a cheese-egg mixture. It is served either in an individual-size free-form wrapped shape, or as a larger pie that is portioned. When made with kasseri cheese, it may be called ''kasseropita'' (). Spanakotiropita is filled with spinach and cheese; ''cf.''

spanakopita Savory spinach pie is a pastry eaten throughout Southeastern Europe. The filling is made of chopped spinach (sometimes chard) and usually feta or white cheese, and egg. Etymology and history Turkey ''Ispanaklı Selanik Böreği'' and/or ' ...

History

According to some scholars, it is stated that in

Ancient Greek cuisine Ancient Greek cuisine was characterized by its frugality for most, reflecting agricultural hardship, but a great diversity of ingredients was known, and wealthy Greeks were known to celebrate with elaborate meals and feasts. The cuisine was found ...

, placenta cake (or ''plakous'', πλακοῦς), and its descendants in

Byzantine cuisine Byzantine cuisine was the continuation of local ancient Greek cuisine, ancient Roman cuisine, and Mediterranean cuisine. Byzantine trading with foreigners brought in grains, sugar, livestock, fruits, vegetables, and spices that would otherwi ...

, ''plakountas tetyromenous'' (πλακούντας τετυρομένους, "cheesy placenta") and ''en tyritas plakountas'' (εν τυρίτας πλακούντας, "cheese-inserted placenta"), are the ancestors of modern ''tiropita''.. A recipe in Greek tradition recorded in

Cato the Elder Marcus Porcius Cato (, ; 234–149 BC), also known as Cato the Censor (), the Elder and the Wise, was a Roman soldier, Roman Senate, senator, and Roman historiography, historian known for his conservatism and opposition to Hellenization. He wa ...

's '' De Agri Cultura'' (160 BC) describes placenta as a sweet layered cheese dish:

Shape the ''placenta'' as follows: place a single row of '' tracta'' along the whole length of the base dough. This is then covered with the mixture heese and honeyfrom the mortar. Place another row of ''tracta'' on top and go on doing so until all the cheese and honey have been used up. Finish with a layer of ''tracta''...place the placenta in the oven and put a preheated lid on top of it ..When ready, honey is poured over the placenta.

Placenta remains the name for a flat baked pie containing cheese in Aromanian (plãtsintã) and in

Romanian Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language ***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language **Romanian cuisine, traditional ...

(

plăcintă ''Plăcintă'' () is a Romanian and Moldovan traditional pastry resembling a thin, small round or square-shaped cake, usually filled with apples or a soft cheese such as Urdă. Etymology The word ''plăcintă'' comes from the Latin ''Placent ...

). Other sources state that Turks also developed similar layered dishes like tiropita. Layered pan-fried breads were developed by the Turks of

Central Asia Central Asia is a region of Asia consisting of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. The countries as a group are also colloquially referred to as the "-stans" as all have names ending with the Persian language, Pers ...

in the

Late Middle Ages The late Middle Ages or late medieval period was the Periodization, period of History of Europe, European history lasting from 1300 to 1500 AD. The late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern period ( ...

. The ancient ''tyropatinum'' described by

Apicius ''Apicius'', also known as ''De re culinaria'' or ''De re coquinaria'' (''On the Subject of Cooking''), is a collection of Food and dining in the Roman Empire, Roman cookery recipes, which may have been compiled in the fifth century CE, or ea ...

, despite the similarity in name, was a sweet

custard Custard is a variety of culinary preparations based on sweetened milk, cheese, or cream cooked with Eggs as food, egg or egg yolk to thicken it, and sometimes also flour, corn starch, or gelatin. Depending on the recipe, custard may vary in con ...

with no crust.Betty Wason, ''Cooks, Gluttons and Gourmets'', 2018, , ''n.p.''

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* * * * * * {{pastries Greek pastries Cypriot cuisine Appetizers Cheese pastries Savoury pies

History

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