Filo Cigars with Feta and Herbs

These classic cigar shaped Turkish pastries are popular snack and meze food, good as nibbles with drinks. In this version they are filled with cheese and herbs, but other popular fillings include baked brinjal (aubergine) and cheese, or mashed pumpkin, cheese and dill. The filo pastry can be folded into triangles, but cigars are the most traditional shape. They can be prepared in advance and kept under damp dish towels in the fridge until ready to be fried.

Ingredients:

250g feta

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 small bunch of fresh parsley,

1 small bunch of fresh, finely chopped mint

1 small bunch of fresh, finely chopped dill

4-5 sheets filo pastry

Sunflower oil for deep frying

Method:

In a bowl, mash the feta with a fork. Beat in the egg and fold in the herbs. Working with one sheet at a time, cut the filo into strips about 10-13 cm wide (4-5 inches) and pile the strips on top of each other. Keep the strips covered with a damp dish towel.

Place a heaped teaspoon of the cheese filling along one of the short ends of the strip. Roll the end over the filling quite tightly quite tightly to keep the cheese filling in place, then tuck in the sides to seal in the filling. Continue to roll until you reach the other end. Brush the tip with water to help seal the roll.

Place the filled cigar, join side down, on a plate and cover with a damp dish towel to keep it moist. Continue with the remaining sheets of filo and filling.

Heat enough oil for frying in a wok or other deep sided pan, and deep-fry the cigars in batches for 5-6 minutes until crisp and golden. Lift out of the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.

Serve immediately.

Leek Soup with Feta, Dill and Paprika

Creamy leek soup is a popular Turkish broth. Flavoured with dill and topped with crumbled white cheese, this soup is warming and satisfying. The saltiness of Feta gives it a good tang, but Roquefort or Parmesan, both equally as salty, could be used, or you could use croutons in place of the cheese. Serve with chunks of fresh, crusty bread.

Ingredients:

30ml olive oil

3 leeks, trimmed, washed and roughly chopped

1 onion, chopped

5ml sugar

1 bunch of fresh dill, chopped, with a few fronds reserved for garnish

600ml water

300ml milk

15ml butter

115g Feta cheese, crumbled

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Paprika to garnish

Method:

Heat the oil in a heavy pan and stir in the chopped leeks and onion. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are soft, but not coloured. Add the sugar and dill. Pour in the water and bring to the boil. Lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Leave the liquid to cool a little before processing with a stick blender until smooth. Pour in the milk and stir over gentle heat until it is hot, but not boiling. Boiling at this point would spoil the texture of the soup. Season with salt and pepper, bearing in mind that feta is salty. Drop the butter onto the surface of the soup and let it melt.

Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and top with the crumbled feta. Serve immediately, garnished with a little paprika and some dill fronds.

Serves 3-4

Meso-Med Salad with Coriander Dressing

I call this salad ‘Meso-Med’ because of the blend of ingredients: 

the mealies, avocado and tomatoes all originate in Mesoamerica, 

while the red onion, feta and cucumber are very Mediterranean. 

The dressing is very Mediterranean until you add the coriander herb, again reminiscent of Mesoamerica, except there it’s known as cilantro. 

In the dressing I use a small amount of chilli flakes, but if you can get Jalapeno peppers, you could use about half a pepper chopped fine. 

All in all this salad is deliciously satisfying, a perfect accompaniment to a braai.

Salad Ingredients

2 mealies, husks removed, brushed with olive oil and grilled on the side of the braai.

1 large avocado, or 2 small ones, diced and sprinkled with lemon juice to prevent oxidation

5-6 Roma tomatoes, diced

½ a medium red onion halved and thinly sliced

60-70g Feta, crumbled

6 inches of English cucumber, quartered and sliced with the skin on

Method

Cut the kernels off the cobs. Assemble the salad in a large bowl, and top with the mealie kernels. Cover with cling film and refrigerate until ready to use.

Coriander Dressing Ingredients

50-60ml olive oil

30ml apple cider vinegar, or red wine vinegar

2.5ml chopped or mashed garlic

30-50ml fresh chopped coriander herb

2.5ml sea salt

2.5ml chilli flakes

3-5ml lemon pepper

Method

Put all the dressing ingredients in a glass jam jar with a lid and shake really well. Check for seasoning and add more oil or vinegar for your taste. When you are ready to serve the salad, add the dressing and toss the salad gently. Top with a little extra copped coriander to garnish and tuck in.

Caramelised Onion and Feta Tart

Ingredients:

1 portion of Easy Flaky Pastry

500ml Caramelised Onions

150g Feta cheese

15ml fresh thyme leaves

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to season

2 spring onion tops, finely sliced

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Method:

Preheat the oven to 220C

Roll out the pastry between two pieces of baking paper to a circle that is narrower than 1cm thick. Remove the paper and place on a baking tray.

Spread the filling over the pastry, leaving an inch or more at the edge, starting with the caramelised onions. Top that with the feta cheese, crumbled and a sprinkling of thyme leaves. Turn up the sides of the pastry all the way around to make a tart. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake for 12-15 minutes and sprinkle with chopped spring onion greens before serving.

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Courgette Salad with Capers Feta and Mint

Ingredients:
1 Medium sized Courgette - about 300g
45ml olive oil
30ml balsamic vinegar
15ml clear honey
1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed
3 shallots, peeled, halved and sliced
30ml capers,drained
15 mint leaves, finely chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
80g feta cheese, cubed

Method:
Top and tail the courgette and shred into ribbons using a potato peeler.
Mix together the olive oil, vinegar, honey and garlic.
Toss the courgette in the dressing and leave it to marinade far half an hour.
Mix in the shallots, capers and mint, season to taste with salt and pepper and serve topped with Feta.

Brinjal and Sweet Pepper Double Cheese Terrine

This terrine needs to be made a day ahead of serving as it needs to be refrigerated overnight.

Great for picnics and braais or barbecues. Brinjal is also known as Aubergine. I like to use the Italian peppers as they are long and sweet, but you can use bell peppers; you'll just need more to coat the terrine pan.

Ingredients:
Coating for the Terrine:
2-3 large sweet Italian red peppers
2 large brinjals or aubergines
sea salt
80ml olive oil

Filling:
15ml olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
15ml ground cumin
10ml caraway seeds
2ml cayenne pepper
250ml stale breadcrumbs
200g Feta Cheese, crumbled
200g mascarponi cheese

Method:
Preheat oven to 180C.

Prepare the peppers and brinjal or aubergines:
Quarter the peppers, remove the seeds and membranes and grill with the skin-sides up until the skin blisters and blackens. Place in a bowl and cover with cling film for 5 minutes, then remove the skins. They should come away quite easily.
Cut the brinjals or aubergines into 1cm slices and place on a wire rack, sprinkle with salt and leave for half an hour. Rinse under cold water and drain on absorbent kitchen paper.
Brush both sides of the brinjal slices with oil and fry until both sides are browned and the flesh is softened.

Make the filling:
Heat oil in a pan, add garlic and spices and cook, stirring, until fragrant; set aside to cool.
Combine the spice mixture with breadcrumbs and cheeses and mix to combine. I like to do this in a blender as it gives a nice smooth mixture.

To Build the Terrine:
Line the bottom of a buttered loaf pan with not quite half of the brinjal slices, overlapping them to cover the base with a complete layer. Line the sides of the pan with the peppers so they overlap the brinjal on the base and there is some overlap at the top.
Press the filling over the brinjal and peppers, folding the overlapping peppers over the mixture at the top.
Cover the top of the terrine with a layer of brinjal slices and press down firmly.
Cover the pan with foil, place terrine on an oven tray, top with another loaf pan half filled with water to press down on the mixture.
Bake in a moderate oven for about 40 minutes or until firm.

Refrigerate overnight, turn out on a plate and serve in slices.