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Here’s a recipe for flaky, golden-delicious Tiropitakia, filled with rich, creamy cheese and brightened up with fresh mint.

These crunchy Greek cheese triangles are a crowd-pleasing meze that is so simple to make.

Whip up a batch and freeze them in ahead of your next party. If you love working with filo pastry, you need to check out my Spanakopita spiral!

What are Tiropitakia?

Tiropitakia are baked filo pastry triangles rolled up and filled with various cheeses. This tiropitakia recipe is more of a Cypriot style, with feta cheese as the prominent cheese, along with haloumi and anari. Fresh mint gets added and cuts through the richness of the cheese and buttery filo.

Watch the short video tutorial

Why you’ll love these filo cheese triangles

A great make-ahead item: You can make a big batch of these and freeze them unbaked. Remember to thaw them overnight.
Vegetarian option: Perfect for your non-meat eater guests.
Party-pleasers: Everyone’s going to love these. From kids to grandmothers, they’ll be a hit, trust me. Pair them with other crowd-favourites like Cypriot meatballs (Keftedes) for a perfect addition to any spread.
Easy to make: No great skills here; the main thing is to keep an eye on your filo so that it doesn’t dry out.

Ingredients for Tiropitakia

Haloumi: Be sure to pat the Halloumi dry before using it to remove excess moisture.
Greek feta cheese: Greek Feta cheese adds a rich and creamy flavor to the filling.
Ricotta cheese: I use Anari in my recipe. It complements the other cheeses by adding a creamy and mildly sweet element.
Fresh mint: This adds a burst of freshness and balances the richness of the cheeses.
Black pepper: Ground black pepper provides a subtle but important hint of spiciness to balance the creamy cheese flavors.
Eggs: These serve as a binding agent in the filling, helping to hold the cheeses and mint together.
Filo pastry: Filo pastry, also known as phyllo pastry, is a thin and flaky dough that's ideal for making Greek cheese pies.
Unsalted butter: Unsalted butter is used to brush the layers of filo pastry, giving them a golden and crispy texture when baked.

Optional
Sesame seeds to sprinkle on top

Top tips for making Tiropitakia

Thawing your filo pastry. If your pastry is frozen, I recommend thawing it overnight in the fridge (not at room temperature) to make it workable. You can take it out of the refrigerator about 30-40 minutes before working with it.
Handling your filo pastry. Handle it gently, as it can be delicate and prone to tearing. Keep it covered with a damp cloth to prevent drying out while working with it.
Filling. When making a tiropitakia recipe, be mindful of the salt content in the cheeses, especially the Halloumi and Feta. Taste the filling before adding additional salt, as the cheeses may already have enough.

Variations of Tiropitakia

Mixed herbs. Add different herbs, like a mix of dill, chives, and thyme, into the cheese filling.
Mushroom and cheese. Sautéed mushrooms, such as cremini or portobello, mixed in with the cheeses, is delicious.
Spiced tiropitakia. Add a pinch of ground nutmeg, paprika, or cayenne pepper to the cheese mixture for a subtle, aromatic kick.
Tiropitakia cups. Instead of traditional triangle or square shapes, use mini filo cups and bake in the same filling.
Mini tiropitakia bites. Make smaller, bite-sized cheese triangles, by cutting the filo dough into smaller squares and folding them into mini triangles.
Sweet tiropitakia. Experiment with sweet variations by using sweetened Ricotta cheese, honey, and cinnamon for the filling and dusting the pastries with powdered sugar.