- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 medium-size yellow onion, chopped
- 2½ cups cooked diced dark chicken meat
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ½ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 cup lightly toasted sliced almonds
- ¼ cup canned chicken broth
- 3 eggs
- 1 pound phyllo dough, thawed if frozen
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- Confectioners’ sugar (garnish)
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. Add the chicken and sprinkle with the ginger, turmeric, 1 teaspoon of the cinnamon, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the parsley and almonds.
- Beat the chicken broth and eggs until well blended and pour into a small saucepan. Cook, stirring constantly, until the consistency resembles soft scrambled eggs. Stir into the chicken mixture to bind. This is the bestilla mixture.
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Cut the sheets of phyllo dough crosswise into fifths. Lay 1 strip down and brush the top with melted butter. Cover the remaining dough with a slightly dampened kitchen towel to keep it from drying out.
- Combine the granulated sugar and remaining 3 teaspoons cinnamon and sprinkle a little evenly over the buttered strip. Top with another phyllo strip and brush it with butter. Place a heaping teaspoon of the bestilla mixture in the center of the strip about ½ inch from the base.
- Fold a comer across the filling and continue to fold, as if you were folding a flag, until the strip is all folded into a neat triangle. Brush both sides with melted butter and place on a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining phyllo, cinnamon sugar, and bestilla mixture (see Note, below).
- Bake until golden, about 30 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes. Arrange on serving platters and dust the tops with sifted confectioners’ sugar. Serve immediately.