FEBRUARY 2021 103Auntie Roberta’s Bourma
(Armenian Phyllo Pastry with
Walnuts)
PHOTO P. 92
ACTIVE 1 HR 35 MIN; TOTAL 2 HR 50 MIN
MAKES ABOUT 40 BOURMA
A wooden skewer, dowel, or chopstick is
the only special tool needed to make this
crispy scrunched phyllo pastry filled with
chopped nuts and drizzled with sugary
syrup. A splash of fresh lemon juice adds
bright, zesty flavor to the syrup that bal-
ances both the sweetness of the pastry
and the rich, buttery walnuts.
11 / 2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup water
11 / 2 tsp. fresh lemon juice
2 cups unsalted butter (16 oz.)
21 / 2 cups finely chopped walnuts (about
12 oz.)
1 lb. frozen phyllo dough sheets
(about 40 sheets), thawed
- Preheat oven to 300°F. Bring sugar and
1 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan
over medium-high; reduce heat to
medium-low, and cook, stirring occasion-
ally, 10 minutes. Stir in lemon juice; cook,
stirring occasionally, 10 minutes. Remove
from heat; let cool to room temperature,
about 1 hour. - Meanwhile, bring butter to a boil in
a small saucepan over medium-high.
Reduce heat to medium; cook, skimming
and discarding milk solids, until clear,
about 15 minutes. (You should have 1^1 / 2
cups clarified butter.) Set aside. Place
nuts in an even layer on a large rimmed
baking sheet; bake in preheated oven until
lightly toasted, about 10 minutes, stirring
halfway through. Let cool completely at
room temperature, about 30 minutes.
Increase oven temperature to 325°F. - Unroll phyllo dough, and lay on a clean,
dry towel; cover with wax paper or parch-
ment paper and a damp towel. Working
with 1 phyllo sheet at a time, place on
a work surface with 1 short side facing
you; brush lightly with about 1 teaspoon
clarified butter. Starting at short edge,
make a 2-inch fold; sprinkle about 1 table-
spoon cooled walnuts over entire dough
Roberta Kochakian
brushes a sheet of
phyllo with butter,
sprinkles it with toast-
ed walnuts, and rolls it
around a dowel to
shape bourma, an
Armenian pastry.
sheet. Place a dowel or wooden skewer
horizontally in middle of fold. Tightly roll
dough over dowel until all phyllo dough
is wrapped around dowel. Holding dowel
ends and rolled dough, gently squeeze
both ends toward center, similar to
threading a curtain on a curtain rod, crin-
kling the bourma until it is about 5 inches
long. Remove dowel from dough; place
scrunched pastry, seam side down, on a
large rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with
remaining phyllo, about 1 cup clarified
butter, and remaining walnuts, placing on
baking sheet touching other bourma.- Brush tops of bourma evenly with
remaining clarified butter. Bake at 325°F
until golden brown, about 30 minutes.
Let bourma cool on baking sheet on a
wire rack about 15 minutes. Drizzle with
sugar syrup before serving. — R O B ERTA
KOCHAKIAN
MAKE AHEAD Bourma may be stored
without syrup in an airtight container at
room temperature up to 3 days.
Auntie Monica’s Seafood Mac
and Cheese
PHOTO P. 94
ACTIVE 35 MIN; TOTAL 1 HR 15 MIN
SERVES 10Loaded with fresh shrimp, crab, and lob-
ster and layered with a rich mixture of
cheeses, this macaroni and cheese gets
an extra boost of deep seafood flavor from
liquid shrimp-and-crab boil. The boil sea-
soning lends its long-cooked flavor to the
casserole without overcooking the deli-
cate seafood.3 qt. water
3 Tbsp. plus^1 / 4 tsp. kosher salt,
divided
1 lb. uncooked penne or large elbow
macaroni
3 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3 cups whole milk
2 cups half-and-half
12 oz. Gouda or Monterey Jack
cheese, shredded (about 3 cups)
12 oz. Muenster or mild cheddar
cheese, shredded (about 3 cups)
4 oz. Gruyère cheese, shredded
(about 1 cup)
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 /^4 cup diced yellow onion
3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
2 medium garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp. seasoned salt (such as
Lawr y’s)
1 Tbsp. liquid shrimp-and-crab boil
(such as Zatarain’s) (optional)
2 to 3 tsp. hot sauce (such as Tabasco),
to taste1 / 2 tsp. black pepper, divided
1 lb. peeled and deveined raw
medium shrimp
8 oz. steamed lobster (such as
Luke’s), chopped into chunks
8 oz. fresh lump crabmeat, drained
and picked over
Cooking spray- Preheat oven to 350°F. Bring 3 quarts
water to a boil in a large stockpot over
high. Add 3 tablespoons kosher salt to
boiling water. Add pasta; cook, stirring
once, 2 minutes less than package
directions for al dente. Remove from
heat. Drain pasta; do not rinse. Return
pasta to stockpot, and gently toss with 1
tablespoon oil. - Microwave milk and half-and-half in a
large microwavable bowl on HIGH until
warmed, 3 to 4 minutes; set aside. Stir
together all cheeses in a large bowl; set
aside. - Melt butter with remaining 2
tablespoons oil in a large skillet over
medium. Add onion; cook, stirring occa-
sionally, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir in flour; cook, stirring constantly,
until combined but not browned, about
1 minute. Add thyme and garlic; cook,
stirring constantly, until fragrant, about
30 seconds. Gradually whisk in warm
milk mixture until smooth. Stir in sea-
soned salt, liquid shrimp-and-crab boil
(if using), hot sauce, and^1 / 4 teaspoon
black pepper. Cook, whisking occa-
sionally, until slightly thickened, 5 to 8
minutes. Add 3 cups cheese mixture;
remove from heat, and whisk until
smooth, about 1 minute. Stir in drained
pasta until fully coated. - Place shrimp, lobster, crabmeat,
remaining^1 / 4 teaspoon kosher salt, and
remaining^1 / 4 teaspoon black pepper in
a medium bowl; toss gently to combine.
Lightly coat a 13- x 9-inch baking dish
with cooking spray; pour in half of pasta
mixture. Sprinkle half of seafood mix-
ture in an even layer on pasta; sprinkle
with 2 cups cheese mixture. Repeat lay-
ers once with remaining pasta mixture,
seafood mixture, and cheese mixture.
Cover with aluminum foil. Bake in pre-
heated oven 30 minutes. Uncover and
bake until cheese is melted, about 10
minutes. Serve hot. —MONICA WILLIAMS
WINE Brisk, tangy coastal white: 2019
La Caña Albariño
MAKE AHEAD Seafood mac and cheese
can be assembled up to 1 day in
advance; cover tightly with plastic wrap
then aluminum foil, and refrigerate. One
hour before baking, remove plastic
wrap, and re-cover with foil. Bake as
directed.