Cheese Pastries

Name: Cheese Pastries (Sambousek B’jibneh)
Prep time: 1 h 20 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h 50 min
Cuisine: Palestinian
Ingredients: 400 g (14 oz or 3 cups) white plain (all-purpose) flour; ¾ tsp instant dried active yeast; 1½ tsp salt; 150 g (5½ oz or ⅔ cup) butter, softened; 300-360 ml (1¼–1½ cups) warm water; 320 g (11¼ oz) semi-salted white sheep’s cheese or low-salt feta; 320 g (11¼ oz) semi-salted white sheep’s cheese or low-salt feta; 1 egg; A small handful of fresh thyme leaves or 1 tbsp dried thyme; A small handful of fresh thyme leaves or 1 tbsp dried thyme

Sambousek B’jibneh

Preparation info

Makes
40

Difficulty
Easy
Ready in
1 hr 50

Appears in

Classic Palestinian Cuisine

By Christiane Dabdoub Nasser

Published 2026

About

Sambousek make the ideal finger food for receptions and are delicious with pre-dinner cocktails. Many homes and caterers prepare cheese sambousek with ready-made puff pastry, which is practical and quite tasty but not quite the real thing, especially if you are serving with an assortment of mezze.

Ingredients

For the dough

400 g (14 oz or 3 cups) white plain (all-purpose) flour

Asia
Palestine
Pastry
Vegetarian
Low calorie

Method

Measure the flour, yeast and salt into a bowl and mix in the butter, working it slowly into the flour with your fingers. Add the warm water a little at a time and mix into the dough, pressing with the heels of your hands and turning until you have a soft, malleable dough that isn’t sticky. Shape into a ball, cover, and set aside in a warm place for 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled in siz