Grandma's Special: Water Boreg

You must be slightly curious about what Water Boreg is all about. After all, what you probably know about boreg is that, it is usually filled with cheese or spinach and most definitely not water. You are correct. Except that this boreg is world-famous and the pride of Armenians called Su Boreg. Su means water in Turkish but this delicious dish is 100% Armenian. The title comes from the layers of dough boiled in water first before baked in the oven. Now you know. 


In my family, this is my grandmothers specialty. There isn't a single grandchild, daughter, son, uncle, aunt, cousin who would want to miss a dinner party that features this dish. It is something that everyone looks forward to. It's not an easy pastry to pull together. There is a certain level of difficulty with preparing the dough, rolling it out, getting it thin enough without ripping it. You really have to dedicate years and years to be an expert. My 80-something dark-hair-version of-Betty White grandmother has spent considerably amount of time perfecting her craft. Wouldn't it be great if we had our own cooking show on TV? Rolling out dough and sharing the wonderful home-made recipes from Asia Minor. Hmm. Food Network Canada. Call me.


Now let's get back to the task at hand.


I wanted to blow people's socks off. I wanted them to gasp and say, "who made this?" I wanted them to scratch their heads and wonder, "how the ... what the .... wow." I needed to find a way to replicate my grandmother's perfect boureg quickly, without dedicating years to perfect the dough. With enough research and a chance discovery in the fresh pasta isle of the supermarket, I was ready to go. File this recipe under "special guests," "impress the parents," "third date." It looks fancy but it is a snap to make. NO ONE needs to know that you didn't spend hours and hours with a rolling pin. 


What you need:


1 package of fresh lasagna sheets
3 cups crumbled feta cheese
1 cup chopped parsley
3 eggs + 1 egg yolk
1 cup melted butter
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon of olive oil








My measurements are not exact and I'm not a chef so I usually adjust as I go with it but you want your ratio of cheese to parsley to be 3:1. 


Combine crumbled feta (note: make sure you taste it. if it's salty, don't add any additional salt.), chopped parsley and the 3 eggs (leave the yolk alone for now). Mix well and set side. Boil the lasagna sheets according to the directions on the package. Once boiled, lay them out so they don't stick to each other. Count the number of sheets. Now, get yourself a pan and brush with the tablespoon of olive oil. Start layering the lasagna sheets. 




On each layer, brush with some butter and some milk. Don't be stingy, esp. with the butter. Keep layering until you reach the half point. 




Add the cheese mix and make sure it covers the sheets. Continue to layer and brush with butter and milk. When you reach the last sheet, brush the top with the egg yolk and butter. Bake until the bottom layer and the top layers get the rosy colour.






Voila. No word of a lie, it was very close to the original. My guinea pigs (mom, dad, hungry husband) all loved it. This was my first trial and next weekend I plan on making it for the grand boom bah - my grandmother - hoping to score points for my ingenuity. Although, there is a good chance she may take me out of her will. That's how GOOD this turned out!


Enjoy!
Foodie Wife