Those who know me know, that I lose my marbles around filo pastry. I love the stuff. Paper thin sheets of buttery, flakey goodness sandwiched together like paper thin sheets of buttery, flakey goodness sandwiched together.. I can imagine myself as a hobo laying on a cold park bench in winter wrapped in it, yet floating off to sleep with a happy, comforted smile.
This is my take on one of the greatest Greek dishes on this here planet, using one of my favourite Maori/Polynesian ingredients.. watercress from leftover boil up! Chur-iffic!
First things first, remember when working with filo, don’t stuff around. Never use the filo shit from any shop that’s come from the frozen section, only out of the fridge area. And, always have a damp cloth on the ready to place over filo sheets that aren’t being used so they don’t dry out.
Ok let’s hit it!
You will need: Your favourite lasagne tray or springform pan Filo Pastry sheets 2 Cups Watercress from boilup. Drained and pressed over night 1 Cup Ricotta 80g Cheddar 100g Fetta Nutmeg 250g butter should be heaps Handful of Dill Handful of Parsley Juice of a Lemon Salt & Pepper 1.As mentioned before you will need to press as much liquid out of the watercress as you can, as not to make the pastry soggy 2.Chop the Parsley and Dill and place into a bowl with watercress, the three cheeses, lemon juice and a good grind of nutmeg. Taste. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper 3.Mix well. Cover and set aside 4.Get your tray and cover the bottom with a sheet of filo pastry. 5.Brush with melted butter.. oh yeah, melt the butter 6.Repeat 4-6 sheets 7.Spread mix over pastry 8.Repeat steps 4-6 9.Give it all a nice little press and pre-cut into squares or triangles. Cut it into any shape you want it’s your pie. 10.Beat an egg and add a splash of milk for basting. Baste it with a brush 11.Cook in 180deg/C or 170deg/C fan forced until golden and flakey 12.Let stand for 5-10 minutes 13.Plate up, take a few Instagram pics and post the shit out of it! Enjoy x