Kypriaki Tahinopita (Cyprus Tahini Pie)

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~ Ingredients: ~ For the Dough: ~ 1 kilo minus 2 cups of hard flour ~ 2 cups plus 4 tbsp of soft flour ~ 1 tsp of salt ~ 1 level tbsp of easy baking yeast ~ 1 cup of sugar ~ 3 level tsp of powder cinnamon ~ A pinch of ground mastic ~ A pinch of ground machleb ~ 3 cups of water or as much as needed ~ For the filling: ~ 3 jars or 720gr of tahini paste ~ 3 cups of sugar ~ 3 level tsp of powder cinnamon

 

~ Dough Preparation: ~ In a large enough bowl add the two kinds of flour and combine together. ~ Add the salt, sugar, yeast, powder cinnamon and grounded mastic and mahleb. ~ Mix well to combine all the dry ingredients. ~ Gradually add the water as much as needed and knead into normal dough. ~ Occasionally cut the dough vertically and horizontally and knead vigorously until the dough is shiny. ~ Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel and set aside for about 30 minutes to rise. ~ Filling Preparation: ~ In a large bowl pour the tahini paste, add the powder cinnamon and mix well to combine the two ingredients. ~ Add the sugar and beat well with a metal spoon because is going to be very stiff. ~ Divide the dough into 13 equal pieces and shape onto a ball. ~ Cover the dough balls with kitchen towel to keep them soft while you work on one at a time. ~ On a flowered surface roll out a dough ball into a sheet of about 12X30 cm. ~ Place 2 heaped tbsp of the tahini mixture in the center of the rolled out dough sheet and spread all over the whole sheet leaving about 1 cm around the edge. ~ Fold the long side of the sheet towards the center covering the 2/3 of the sheet and fold the other 1/3 over the top. ~ Stretch the folded dough sheet a little, fold in half and using your hands, on a non floured surface, shape into a roll of approximately 80 cm long. ~ Take the two ends and swirl them so that a rope-shape is formed about 117 cm long. ~ Roll the two ends of the rope in the opposite directions to form two snail shells. ~ Take one snail-shape piece, place it over the other and press it together with your hands to about 15 cm in diameter. ~ Prepare all the tahinopites the same way following the above directions and place on a lightly floured surface. ~ Sprinkle them lightly with flour and cover them with plastic wrap and set them aside to rise. ~ Once they are risen, place them on a lightly greased baking pan and bake at 325-350 degrees Fahrenheit (see conversions) for about 1/2 an hour or until golden brown. ~ Kypriakes Tahinopites (Cyprus Tahini Pies) can be eaten at any time and particularly during Lenten Times. ~ Good luck and enjoy.