Pesto Feta Filo Pastry Swirls

Makes 5

Time 50 minutes

Equipment:

Tala Stainless Steel Pizza Cutter 

Tala Stainless Steel Measuring Cups 

Tala Performance 35 x 40 cm Baking sheet 

Tala Silicone Spatula 

Tala Performance 16cm Saucepan 

Tala Pastry Brush 

Ingredients:

For the Pesto:

80g sunflower seeds

2 tbsp nutritional yeast

1 garlic clove

20g fresh basil (some small stalks are OK)

10g baby spinach

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt and pepper

1-2 tbsp water, as needed

For the Filling:

100g pesto

250g baby spinach

1 tsp olive oil

1 red onion, small dice

2 garlic cloves, crushed

80g vegan feta cheese, crumbled

40g vegan cheddar-style cheese, grated

For the Swirls:

5 sheets of filo pastry

3 tbsp olive oil

2 tbsp sesame seeds

Fresh basil leaves

Method:

1. Start by making the pesto: add all the ingredients to a food processor and blend until smooth, adding water as needed. Measure 100g for the filling and keep the rest in the fridge in a sealed container for 3-5 days.
2. For the filling: add all the spinach to a large pan and cook over a high heat with a lid on, stirring often to wilt the leaves. They will reduce down a lot and leave you with about 1 packed cup of spinach. Leave in a sieve suspended over a bowl.
3. Return the pan to the heat with 1 tsp olive oil and fry off the onion and garlic for 10 minutes until soft.
4. Preheat the oven to 170Fan/190*C and line a tray with baking parchment.
5. Squeeze out all the excess water from the spinach and roughly chop it. Add to a mixing bowl with the pesto, onion and garlic mix, both cheeses and season with salt and pepper. Stir well.
6. Place one sheet of filo pastry on a clean work surface and gently brush with olive oil. Spoon 1/5 of the mix all along the longest edge of the pastry in a sausage shape. Gently and loosely roll up the filling into a long sausage shape. Now coil the pastry into a swirl (don’t worry if there are some tears). Place on the baking sheet and repeat to make 5 swirls.
7. Brush the swirls with more olive oil and sprinkle over the sesame seeds.
8. Bake for 23-25 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.
9. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving with salads, potatoes and other vegetables.
10. These can also be enjoyed cold, allow to cool fully then store in a sealed container in the fridge for 2-3 days.