Phyllo dough

Phyllo, also spelled filo, is a dough of flour and water that is stretched until the sheets are almost as thin as tissue. The name comes from the Greek word for leaf.

Bakers brush each sheet with melted butter or oil, stack them, and wrap or roll them around fillings, then bake until the layers turn crisp and golden. It is the basis of baklava and many strudel-style and nut pastries. The layers are separated by fat rather than created by folding fat into the dough, so the result shatters rather than puffs.

The sheets dry out and crack very quickly, so most cooks buy them frozen and thaw them fully, covered, before use. Keep unused sheets under a barely damp towel or plastic wrap while you work.