Jamie's Spinach and Feta Filo Pie

By Helen
Main Ingredients:

• Ready-made pastry
• Spinach
• Feta cheese
• Cherry tomatoes and cucumber
• Mint and basil

This week's New Food Monday starts (as is becoming traditional) with me blaming our local supermarket for not having a key ingredient. 

This week it was filo pastry, and I have to admit I had but low expectations for the puff pastry we substituted, after rejecting Plan A (throw tomatoes at staff).

Three eggs were mixed with crumbled feta and grated cheddar, toasted pine nuts, oregano, lemon zest, nutmeg and a big bag of spinach which had been wilted in a little butter and oil. While the frying pan was still hot it was lined with half the thinly-rolled pastry and the eggy mixture poured back in, before the other half of the pastry was artfully arranged on the top.

I considered tackling this recipe during Veggie Lent and I'm very glad I came back to it now. The pie was much prettier than I expected, the spinach was soft and sweet and the cheese not too overpowering. Admittedly this meal was made special by the salads - tomatoes with basil and garlic, and cucumber with olives, chili and mint.

The mix of herby flavours and fresh veggies made the whole thing feel just a little bit luxurious (or at least like one of my favourite Whitecross Street lunchboxes) - and for once it didn't require every pan and worksurface in the kitchen.

For a veggie recipe, it wasn't cheap - coming in at £3.12 a head - but it was surprisingly filling, relatively uncomplicated and gave the illusion of being fantastically healthy!

Best for... Dining on the terrazzo, or with a mix of veggie and carnivorous friends
Taken from... Jamie Oliver - 30 Minute Meals
Chris says... Tasty, summery and surprisingly filling, even sworn meat lovers will be happy!