Emily Roz: Feta, Mint & Spinach Pockets

25 minutes

Serves 2-3

Vegetarian

Recipe from The World Is Your Dumpling by Emily Roz (HarperCollins)

Eating these feta, mint and spinach parcels always reminds me of being on holiday in Greece.

One morning, while visiting Hydra – a small island off the coast of the mainland – we woke up for the sunrise. It’s my favourite time of day because everyone is asleep apart from the local bakers setting up their shops and the farmers trotting around on donkeys, clip-clopping on the cobbled streets. After enjoying the sunrise, we toddled down to the cute bakery on the main street and bought several Greek pastries including spanakopita – a savoury feta and spinach pie. Sitting on the sea front, we’d gobble up our pastries and feel like life really couldn’t be better. These spanakopita-inspired baked parcels are a homage to Greece and their glorious pastries.

[object Object] Photo by Haarala Hamilton

Dumpling Recipes

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Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F.

2. Place the spinach in a colander and pour over boiling water from the kettle until it’s wilted, then rinse with cold water. Allow to drain, then squeeze any excess water out of the spinach and roughly chop.

3. Add the chopped spinach to a large bowl along with the feta, Parmesan, garlic, onion, two of the eggs, chopped mint and a grind of black pepper. Give everything a good mix until well combined.

4. Get your sheets of filo out but keep them covered under a damp tea towel to stop them drying out. Lay a filo sheet down and lightly brush with melted butter, then fold the filo sheet vertically into three, so you have a long strip. Add 1 heaped tablespoon of the filling to the base of the strip and then fold the bottom corner up and over to make a triangle shape. Keep folding over, working your way to the top of the pastry strip, maintaining the triangle shape as you go. Repeat this step to make all 8 pockets, placing them on a baking tray as you finish each one.

5. Lightly beat the remaining egg and then brush this over the pastry parcels. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake in the oven for 25 minutes, or until golden and crispy.

6. Remove from the oven, drizzle with honey and serve!