Spinach & Cheese Triangles

Name: Spinach & Cheese Triangles
Yield: 9
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients: 3 sheets fillo pastry; 1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil; 1 small brown onion, finely chopped; Salt flakes, to taste; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 1 teaspoon ground coriander; 150g baby spinach; 100g brined sheep’s milk cheese (such as Feta), crumbled; 1 tablespoon currants, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes; 50g butter, melted

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Fillo pastry forms a delicious case for all sorts of fillings, meat and vegetable alike. Use this recipe as a starting point for your own creations – combine ricotta, haloumi, akawi or any Middle Eastern white cheese with chicory, herbs or any leafy greens. It’s important to wilt leafy greens well and squeeze out as much liquid as possible so that the filling doesn’t make the pastry soggy; fresh herbs can just be stirred through the cheese without wilting. These spinach and cheese triangles are best eaten as soon as they’re baked, as they tend to go soggy if reheated. Serve them with a Greek salad (see video below), some olives and pickles for a simple mezze.

Makes 9 pieces

Ingredients

3 sheets fillo pastry
1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small brown onion, finely chopped
Salt flakes, to taste
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon ground coriander
150g baby spinach
100g brined sheep’s milk cheese (such as Feta), crumbled
1 tablespoon currants, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes
50g butter, melted

Method

Remove fillo pastry from the fridge and set aside in the box to come to room temperature.
Preheat oven to 180°C.
Heat oil in a frying pan over medium heat.
Add onion and a small pinch of salt (remember the cheese is salty) and cook for about 10 minutes, until just starting to colour.
Add garlic, and coriander and stir for a minute or so, until aromatic.
Meanwhile, wash spinach, drain well then place in the frying pan over low-medium heat, cover and cook for a minute or so then stir until completely wilted and soft.
Tip into a colander and set aside until cool enough to handle then squeeze to remove as much excess moisture as possible.
Chop and place in a bowl with cheese.
Drain currants, add them to the bowl and mix to combine everything very well.
Shape into 9 balls of roughly equal size.
Remove fillo from box and place under a clean, dry cloth (returning any excess to the fridge inside its original packaging).
Working with 1 sheet at a time, place it vertically on a clean, dry work bench and brush with butter. Cut vertically into 3 long strips of equal width.
Place a ball of the spinach mixture on the top right of one strip and fold the top left corner across it to form a triangle, gently pushing the filling into a triangular shape under the flap of fillo.
Fold the triangle forward then over to the left maintaining the triangular shape. Keep folding the triangle down the strip of fillo until all the pastry is wrapped around the filling.
Place on a baking paper-lined baking tray.
Repeat with remaining fillo and spinach mixture.
Brush triangles with butter all over, ensuring they end up seam side down.
Bake for about 30 minutes, until dark golden.
Serve spinach & cheese triangles hot.