Bastilla. B'stilla. Bisteeya. These are variations on the name of a traditional Moroccan pie, encased in very thin layers of flaky dough called
warqa pastry, and filled with a mixture of chicken, cinnamon, sometimes almonds, and various other spices. It combines sweet and savory flavors in a delightful way; I've only tasted it once, and would love to have it again.
On the most recent episode of the Great British Baking Show, released on Netflix October 18, judge Paul Hollywood set the contestants a challenge of baking "A Moroccan Pie" in 2 hours. Only one of the contestants had ever even heard of the dish -- on the travel channel, he said. The GBBS didn't use the Arabic name that I mentioned above, but it still was very exotic to all of them. In fact, none seemed at all familiar with Moroccan traditional spices or pastry, which they made by trial and error. I'd say this challenge was a bit of a travesty, though a very good-natured travesty! Here are some screen shots of the episode from this very popular show.
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| The model pie, presumably made by Paul himself or one of his staff. |
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| Hearing the challenge. |
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| Making the filling. |
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| One contestant's pie fell apart a little bit. Others "exploded." |
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Judging the pies: they were supposed to slice into nice pieces.
This one didn't make it. |
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| The judges and the comic commenters examine the contestants' pies and grade them from worst to best. |
We are big fans of the Great British Baking Show, though I have virtually never seen them bake anything that I would feel confident to try at home! Maybe not this one either, though I did make some soup with similar Moroccan spices. I did look for actual recipes, though: here are some links to recipes for this intriguing dish. Some of these use purchased filo dough, which would make it a lot easier than it was for the contestants!
This post was written by Mae Sander for maefood dot blogspot dot com.
If you read it elsewhere, it's been pirated!
I am not a fan of any cooking show, so have never watched Great British Baking Show, but the pie does look really amazing!
ReplyDeleteLove the show but haven't seen this episode yet. The pie looks good, not something I would make though. Wish Hollywood's cookbooks converted gram measurements, etc! I miss Mary Berry this season, show good anyway!
ReplyDeleteI lived in Morocco in the 70s, and had this dish several times there. It's a wonderful dish! Traditionally it's made with pigeon. Or at least it was in Fez, where I lived. Never made it -- making your own warqa is a pain (although you could probably substitute phyllo). I've thought about making a crustless version of this, but have never gotten around to it. Probably the best traditional recipe I've seen is Paula Wolfert's in her Morocco cookbook. Fun post -- thanks.
ReplyDeleteI'm behind in the show so I quickly scrolled down becasue I was worried about spoilers. I'll come back and read this post later!
ReplyDeleteFirst let me comment that I love the cooking show too! Next, I want to share that we have a Moroccan restaurant nearby, and we go gaga over their Bastilla- they make a meat, chicken, and vegetarian versions.
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine how difficult it would be to make and not something I would ever attempt!
Sadly, we couldn't find vegetarian Bastilla or other traditional Moroccan dishes on our recent visit to Tangier, so I didn't really get to taste anything exciting- basically ate vegetables, salads, and chickpeas! I enjoyed your review!
Love the show but haven't seen this episode yet. The pie looks tasty -- just the spices alone sound tempting.
ReplyDeleteIt's a gorgeous pie. I have not caught any of this season's episodes yet but hope to start soon. ;-)
ReplyDeleteWell this gave the contestants something of a challenge! I'd like to try it myself, but not bake it! Phyllo type pastry dough has been a real trial anytime I've tried to deal with it.
ReplyDeleteI'm so behind on this season. I'll look forward to this episode. Have you read Anca's blog? Every year she does the GBBS challenges or at least some of them. I don't know if she's doing a lot this year but some of the end game looks great. I love this series! So does Rick, which is why I'm behind -- we try to watch together and that isn't always easy time and schedule-wise!
ReplyDeleteThe pastry looks so beautiful, but I can see how it would fall apart or explode. I'm not brave enough to try it.
ReplyDeleteI would love to watch that show. One day........
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