SACO — The women of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church have perfected the art of making traditional Greek pastry.

Every year, the ladies work together to make tens of thousands of traditional Greek pastries, using tried and true recipes, for the church’s annual Greek Festival.

This year is no different, as the church prepares for the 23rd annual festival, which will be held Friday through Sunday at the church, located at 186 Bradley St.

On a recent morning, a group of women were assembled at different stations each performing a specific task in the multi-step process of making thiples. Thiples are a flaky pastry made of thin, stretched out dough which is folded and fried and then dipped in a honey sauce.

“We’ve got it down to a system,” said parishioner Debbie Starr. “It’s a lot of work, but it’s fun, too.”

Other pastries the ladies have been preparing include finikia, a walnut spiced cookie dipped in honey syrup and topped with walnuts; paxemathia, a biscotti-like cookie; and galatoboureko, a baked custard wrapped in phyllo dough. And of course there’s baklava, the popular pastry made with phyllo dough layered with walnuts, spices and covered in honey syrup.

“The thing that everyone really loves is the baklava,” said parishioner Rhoda Conley.

The festival will also feature dinner and lunch items, including gyros, Greek roasted chicken, stuffed grape leaves and marinated skewered lamb.

The festival runs from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. In addition to food there will be music and dance performances, church tours, a Greek market and a children’s area.

A shuttle bus will be available to provide transportation to the Saco church at the Saco Valley Shopping Center and the Saco Community Center on Franklin Street from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 325 or egotthelf@journaltribune.com.