Rick Stein: Camembert & Spinach Filo Pastry Slices with a Beetroot and Pomegranate Salpicon

20 minutes - 25 minutes

Serves: 2

Vegetarian

There are a number of dishes in this book where the object, apart from great taste, is a Christmassy look.

So here I have combined spinach and slices of Camembert in a filo pastry parcel with what I would call a salpicon: diced cooked beetroot and shallots with pomegranate seeds and molasses. So there we have the greens and shiny reds like little jewels, as David Pritchard, the television director I worked with for years, would have said. This recipe is a little treat for times when there’s just a couple of you, but of course you can double it up if you like.

Extracted from Rick Stein's Christmas - Recipes, Memories & Stories for the Festive Season, BBC Books, £28. Photography James Murphy. Buy Now

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Vegetarian recipes

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Method

First wilt the spinach in a pan in just the water that clings to the leaves after washing and draining, then squeeze out as much liquid as you can.

Roughly chop, then season well and set aside to cool.

To make the salpicon, gently fry the shallot in the olive oil until soft. Add the diced beetroot and cook for a couple of minutes, then add the pomegranate molasses and season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and leave to cool to room temperature, then stir through the pomegranate seeds and parsley.

Preheat the oven to 220°C/Fan 200°C. Lay a sheet of filo pastry on a board and brush it with melted butter. Add 2 more sheets on top, brushing each with butter. Cut the rectangle into 2 squares. Place half the spinach on one of the squares, making it about the size of a slice of the cheese. Add a slice of cheese, then wrap to completely encase the cheese in pastry. Make sure there are no holes, or the cheese will leak out. Tuck any ends underneath and brush with butter, then sprinkle with sesame seeds, if using. Place on a baking tray and repeat with the remaining ingredients.

Bake for 20–25 minutes until crisp and golden brown and serve with the beetroot and pomegranate salpicon.