Sweet Pumpkin Coils

Sweet Pumpkin Coils
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In the past, these delicious coiled pastries from Thessaloniki were made with homemade pastry, but commercial filo makes them much quicker and easier to prepare. The filling is sweetened pumpkin flavored with a dash of olive oil, walnuts, cinnamon and rosewater. Rodanchas are usually served lightly dusted with icing sugar, and traditionally for Purim. — Paola Gavin, author of Hazana
Servings
12
servings
Ingredients
  • 12 sheets fresh or thawed frozen filo pastry, each about 30cm x 18cm (12in x 7in)
  • extra virgin olive oil, for brushing
  • confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
  • 1 small pumpkin, about 2lb
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/2 cup caster (superfine) sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 2 tablespoon rosewater
  • 1 freshly shelled, finely ground in a blender or food processor
Directions
  1. Lay a sheet of filo pastry on a clean cloth, with the longer side facing you, and brush lightly with oil. Spoon a line of filling about 1.5cm (1/2in) thick along the long side of the pastry, just inside the edge. Fold the edge over the filling and then roll up into a long, thin log, brushing the filo lightly with oil as you roll. Take hold of one end of the log and loosely roll it up like a coiled snake, being careful not to tear the pastry. Repeat with the remaining pastry and filling.
  2. Arrange the coils side by side on a well-oiled baking sheet and brush the tops lightly with oil. Bake in a preheated 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4 oven for 15 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. When cold, dust lightly with icing sugar.
  3. Recipes excerpted with permission from Hazana: Jewish Vegetarian Cooking by Paola Gavin (Quadrille October 2017)
  4. To make the filling, bake the whole pumpkin in a preheated 180ºC/350ºF/gas 4 oven for 30 minutes or until tender. Remove from the oven and, when cool enough to handle, cut in half and remove the skin, pith and seeds. Place the pumpkin flesh in a large bowl and mash with a potato ricer. Add the olive oil, sugar, cinnamon and rosewater and mix well. Stir in the ground walnuts.
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