Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 375º F.
2. In a large saucepan over medium heat, whisk together milk, semolina, 1/2 cup sugar and 1 tablespoon butter.
3. Cook mixture, stirring continuously, until it thickens, 12-15 minutes, then stir in salt and vanilla extract.
4. Remove mixture from heat and set aside.
5. In a separate bowl, beat eggs until ribbony and mix in remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Beat egg mixture into slightly cooled pudding mixture until fully incorporated, then stir in lemon zest.
6. Open phyllo package and begin to prepare baking dish by brushing all over with butter. Place one layer of phyllo into the baking dish and generously brush with butter, then continue with half the remaining phyllo layers, brushing butter in between each layer.
7. Pour cooled custard into phyllo crust, then top with remaining phyllo, continuing to brush butter liberally between each layer.
8. Note: don’t worry about overhanging edges; brush with butter, then roll any extra dough over and onto itself to create a border or rim.
9. Brush remaining butter over top layer of phyllo.
10. Place baking dish in oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until center, from what you can tell, is just set. Check on it to make sure it doesn’t burn and tent with aluminum foil, if necessary.
11. In a separate saucepan over medium-high heat, whisk together sugar, lemon juice and water to create syrup.
12. Bring to a boil and cook for 4-5 minutes, then remove from heat and whisk in vanilla extract and cinnamon, if using.
13. Remove baking dish from oven and let cool for 15-20 minutes. Pour syrup over your custard pie, then let it sit for 1-2 hours, or until syrup has been fully absorbed. Optional: let sit overnight.
14. When ready to serve, dust with powdered sugar, then slice, serve and enjoy.