DOUBLE GREENS & FILO PIE
I have no problem with eating my greens - I could probably give Popeye a run for his money. Spinach, Chard, Spring Greens and Kale - I love them all. This simple pie welcomes any of the aforementioned green leaves. Paired with a creamy salty feta cheese and encased in crispy wafer thin sheets of Filo pastry, it's extremely delicious and good for you too.
Double Greens & Filo Pie
Olive oil
1 bunch spring onions, trimmed and roughly chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
250g kale, stalks removed and leaves shredded
250g chard or spinach, leaves shredded and chard stalks chopped
grated zest of ½ unwaxed lemon
3 organic free-range eggs
200 g feta cheese
small bunch fresh parsley, picked and roughly chopped
small bunch fresh dill, picked and roughly chopped
4 large sheets filo pastry, or 8 smaller ones
1 tbsp poppy seeds
1. Preheat your oven to 220°C/fan 200°C/gas 7.
2. Put a 26cm non-stick oven-proof frying pan on medium heat and add a little olive oil. Add the spring onions with a pinch of salt and fry for a few minutes, until softened.
3. Next, add a couple of handfuls of spring greens or kale and cook until they have shrunk down a little. Keep adding like this until all the greens are in the pan, then cook until just wilted. Add the chard or spinach and let that wilt too. Sprinkle over the lemon zest and season with more salt if needed and a bit of pepper. Transfer to a bowl and leave to cool a little.
4. Crack the eggs into a mixing bowl, crumble in the feta and add the chopped herbs. Once the greens are cool, add these too. Wipe out the frying pan with some kitchen paper. Get yourself a large sheet of baking paper, about 50cm long, and lay it on your work surface. Drizzle it with a little olive oil, then scrunch it up into a ball so it’s all coated (this will stop it burning in the oven). Now lay it flat again.
5. Lay the filo over the baking paper in two layers – it will overlap here and there but that’s okay. Drizzle the lot with a bit more oil. Now carefully lift the paper to rest on top of the frying pan (if you don’t have an oven proof frying pan a similar sized flan tin or shallow cake tin will do), with the excess hanging evenly round the edges.
6. Pour the egg and greens mixture into the middle and level out with a spoon. Fold the excess layers of pastry over the top to cover the top of the greens mixture. No need to be too neat here, as some movement and texture looks beautiful. Serve with a simple salad.
Recipe from A Modern Way to Eat by Anna Jones