Melopita | Crustless Greek Honey & Cheese Pie

Name: Melopita - Crustless Greek Honey & Cheese Pie
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 55 min
Ingredients: 600 grams ricotta cheese (fresh); 100 ml honey; 3 eggs; 1 tbsp corn starch ((corn flour)); 1 tbsp vanilla extract; 60 ml honey; 1 tbsp ground cinnamon

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If you love cheesecake but are intimidated to make it at home, you have to try my recipe for Melopita, the honey and cheese pie from the Greek island of Sifnos. This traditional Greek recipe is essentially a crustless cheesecake, but without all the fuss - there's no water bath or fancy equipment required, not even a stand mixer!

overhead shot of a baked melopita honey pie on a white plate with a few slices removed and honey pooling on the plate with two sticks of canela on the side.

CONTENTS

Why you'll love this
What goes into this recipe
How to make this recipe
Expert tips
FAQs
Video - how to make it
Related Recipes
📋 Recipe

Why you'll love this

It's simple. Melopita (pronounced meh-LOW-pita) is a delightful regional specialty of Sifnos, one of the most beautiful Greek isles, in an island group known as the Cyclades. Comprised of two words, meli which means "honey," and pita which means "pie," this simple dessert is easy to make and a real treat to eat.
It has cheese! While the name suggests that this dessert is primarily made from honey, it actually reminds me more of a crustless cheesecake. The original recipe calls for "anthotyro" which is a soft and mild fresh cheese. Melopita can also be substituted with another Greek cheese known as "myzithra." I didn't have either of those on hand so I used ricotta, and it worked wonders!
It's crustless. Dancing somewhere between a custard and a baked cheesecake, this honey "pie" is a real keeper. Unlike other pies that are made with pastry crusts, melopita is actually crustless and naturally gluten free. That said, you can feel free to bake the custard in a pie shell of your choosing - I'm not here to judge.
It has only 5 ingredients. Made with just 5 ingredients plus the most basic kitchen equipment - namely a whisk, mixing bowl and cake pan - melopita is the perfect cheesecake recipe for a novice home cook. Just whisk, bake, cool, drizzle with honey, dust with cinnamon and eat. How easy is that?!?
Melopita is the perfect light dessert. Fresh, light, and with just the right amount of sweetness, this traditional Greek dessert recipe is just begging to be on your holiday table. Now let's get to it, shall we?

Related: Try my galatopita (Greek custard pie) for more creamy goodness!

What goes into this recipe

All you need to make this creamy, dreamy traditional honey pie is five (5!!!) ingredients. Here's what you'll need:

ingredients for making greek crustless cheesecake recipe measured out into bowls.

Ricotta Cheese - As with most things, fresh ricotta is best here. You can feel free to make your own ricotta cheese with milk and lemon juice or vinegar, or choose a high quality brand from the grocery store. Obviously you can feel free to substitute either anthotyro cheese or a soft mizythra cheese if you're lucky enough to have access!
Honey - Since this is a primary flavoring agent of melopita (remember it means "honey pie"), be sure to choose a high quality product here. Local wildflower honey is a favorite of mine not only because of the flavor, but also because it supports local pollinators, but any good honey will work here. Feel free to experiment with infused honeys, but be picky about what flavors you use.
Eggs - For easy whisking, be sure your eggs are at room temperature. If you forgot to pull them out of the fridge ahead of time, place them in a bowl of warm (not boiling) water for 5-10 minutes.
Corn Flour - Also known as corn starch, this is the thickening agent of choice for this gluten free cheesecake. If you don't have any on hand, you can substitute 2x as much rice flour or potato starch instead.
Vanilla Extract - Vanilla is a lovely way to add depth of flavor without overpowering the honey. You can also use vanilla paste or powder, or feel free to experiment with other extracts like lemon or almond if you're feeling daring.

How to make this recipe

This melopita recipe is seriously as simple as baking gets.

steps 1 -4 of making greek cheesecake (melopita): adding ricotta, honey, eggs and vanilla to mixing bowl.

Steps 1-4: Add the ricotta, honey, eggs and vanilla into a large mixing bowl.

steps 5-8 of making melopita honey cheese pie: adding cornstarch to bowl, whisking the cheesecake mixture, pouring into a baking tin, and finishing with honey and cinnamon.

Step 5: Add corn flour to bowl with other ingredients.
Step 6 : Whisk until the batter is smooth and uniform.
Step 7: Pour into baking pan and cook for 45-50 mins until the top has browned and the centre of the melopita no longer wobbles.
Step 8: Once cooked allow to cool in the pan for 5 mins. Remove the melopita and allow it to cool completely, then drizzle with remaining honey and top with cinnamon. Enjoy!

Expert tips

This easy recipe for Greek honey pie is about as straightforward as it gets. That said, I've learned a few things along the way that'll make for a chef-worthy melopita:

Make sure your eggs are room temperature. The primary reason for this is that room temp egg yolks break more easily and will mix into the batter more evenly. Cold eggs can result in lumpy batter, longer bake times and a stodgy cheesecake.
Get high quality ricotta cheese. Be sure to use a fresh, whole milk ricotta from a good cheesemonger and avoid the watery stuff found in the big hypermarkets. If you accidentally buy a package that seems watery or thin, all is not lost - simple take the time to strain it using a mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth.
Preheat your oven. Make sure your oven is at temperature before placing the baking tin inside. For the most accurate results, I recommend investing in an oven thermometer, as oven temps can vary widely.
Add extra flavour. Adding a little grated lemon zest adds a hint of zing and freshness to the melopita.

FAQs

What kind of cheese is the best for this recipe?

Traditionally speaking, melopita would be made using a soft Greek cheese like anthotyro or mizythra. I have substituted fresh, high quality cow's milk ricotta because it is easier to find in my area. If you have goat or sheep's milk ricotta, those should also work well.

What can I use in place of ricotta cheese?

If you don't have any ricotta on hand, you have a few options. First, you can try your hand at making homemade ricotta cheese using cow's milk and an acid like white vinegar, lemon juice or buttermilk.

Second, while I haven't tried them myself, there are some swaps that *should* work here: farmer's cheese, fromage blanc, cream cheese or mascarpone. If you have cottage cheese on hand, you can also try blending it to make smaller curds before swapping it in.

Can I make this without dairy?

Since melopita is essentially a cheesecake, making it without dairy is a bit of a risk. I'd suggest opting for a lactose-free ricotta cheese first. However, you can try substituting silken tofu for the ricotta instead. If you do, let me know how it turns out in the comments below!

slice of melopita (Greek honey and cheese pie) on a round white dessert plate with a silver spoon.

Video - how to make it

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📋 Recipe

a greek cheesecake on a plate drizzled with honey.

Melopita - Crustless Greek Honey & Cheese Pie

Author: Peter G

Try my recipe for melopita, the honey and cheese pie from Sifnos. This traditional Greek recipe is essentially a crustless cheesecake, but without all the fuss - there's no water bath or fancy equipment required, not even a stand mixer!

4.92 from 12 votes

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Prep Time 10 mins

Cook Time 45 mins

Total Time 55 mins

Cuisine Greek

Servings serves

Ingredients

To drizzle:

▢ 60 ml honey
▢ 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 180 deg C and grease a 20cm springform baking pan.
Whisk all the ingredients in a large bowl, until smooth and free of any lumps.
Pour into baking pan and cook for 45-50 mins until the top has browned and the centre of the melopita no longer wobbles.
Once cooked allow to cool in the pan for 5 mins. Remove and allow it to cool completely.
Once cooled drizzle with an extra ¼ cup honey and dust with cinnamon.

Notes

Make sure your eggs are room temperature. The primary reason for this is that room temp egg yolks break more easily and will mix into the batter more evenly. Cold eggs can result in lumpy batter, longer bake times and a stodgy cheesecake.
Get high quality ricotta cheese. Be sure to use a fresh ricotta from a good cheesemonger and avoid the watery stuff found in the big hypermarkets. If you accidentally buy a package that seems watery or thin, all is not lost - simple take the time to strain it using a mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth.
Preheat your oven. Make sure your oven is at temperature before placing the baking tin inside. For the most accurate results, I recommend investing in an oven thermometer, as oven temps can vary widely.
Add extra flavour. Adding a little grated lemon zest adds a hint of zing and freshness to the melopita.

Nutrition

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.

Made this recipe?Let me know how you went and tag @souvlakiman on Instagram!

This post was originally published in September 2013, but was republished with new content and pictures in November 2021.