BÖREK WITH MALLOW, GOOSEFOOT AND FETA

This is the börek in my dreams! It is extremely delicious! 

I used to see goosefoot on the stalls in the open air markets here; but a few years ago I did not like it so much when I tried it raw in the salad. It was too crunchy for my liking. But this plant does just wonders in the börek! A must try!

goosefoot is just delicious in börek

Ingredients: (serves 3 – 4)

2 thin flaky dough (known as yufka or phyllo)

For the stuffing:

A handful of mallow, washed and drained

Half a bundle of goosefoot, washed and drained

200 gr. Feta, grated

grated feta

1 tea spoon of dried red pepper flakes (optional)

For the sauce/milky wash

1 egg white

Half a glass of milk

2  spoons of olive oil

Half a glass of sparkling water

2 spoons of yoghurt

 

For the top of the börek/ for the glaze

1 egg yolk

Black cumin or sesame seeds 

Method:

1. Keep the stalks and the leaves of the mallow seperately. Steam-cook the mallow leaves for 1 minute. Alternatively you can soak them in boiling water for a minute and take them out immediately. As for the stalks, steam-cook or boil them for 10 minutes as they are harder. Chop the mallow.
2. Steam-cook the goosefoot for 1 - 2 minutes. Alternatively you can soak them in boiling water for 1 - 2 minutes and take it out and drain.
3. Mix the ingredients of the filling.
4. Whisk the ingredients of the sauce. Add 2 -3 spoons of this mixture into the mixture for the filling.
5. Lay one of the phyllo over a flat area. Cut it into half. Set one of the halves apart in order to use later. Moisten the phyllo with a 3 – 4 spoons of the sauce (or 6 -7 dessert spoons).
6. Take ¼ of the börek filling and place it on phyllo going parallel to the long end of the phyllo. Fold the left and right ends inside with 1 cm. and start rolling the phyllo over the filling.
7. Place the roll in an oven dish by giving it a spiral shape.
8. Apply the same process for the rest of the phyllo; going over the spiral shape in the middle everytime.
9. Brush the egg yolk over the börek.
10. Sprinkle the rest of the milky wash over the börek.
11. Sprinkle black cumin or sesame seeds.
12. Bake the börek until it becomes golden on top in a pre-heated oven at 200 degrees celcius. 

Step 1 & 2 - mallow and goosefoot chopped

Step 3

Step 5 - cut the phyllo into two from the middle

Step 6

Step 6 - start rolling

Step 6 - that is what you will get after having rolled each phyllo over the filling

Step 7

Step 8

Step 9 - 10 - 11

börek with mallow, goosefoot and feta - just delicious!

BÖREK WITH FETA CHEESE AND PARSLEY FILLING

(English recipe is below. Peynirli ve maydanozlu börek tarifi için burayi tiklayin)

Börek is a very popular kind of pastry in Turkey. It is eaten at the breakfast, at lunch or at evening tea’s –simply at any time of the day!. The most common one is made with feta (or “beyaz peynir” as we call it in Turkey – translated as white cheese) and parsley. It is nice to have it with some tomato, cucumber and tea! 

Ingredients (9 – 10 slices)

3 thin flaky dough (known as yufka or phyllo)

2 eggs

50 – 100 gr of butter, molten (you should have just enough to fill one small Turkish tea glass)

1 Turkish tea cup of milk

2 – 3 desert spoons of baking powder

350 gr feta, grated

Half a bundle of parsley, chopped fine

A handful of black cumin or sesame seeds

Method:

1. Preheat the oven at 180 degrees.
2. For the sauce to make the börek wet: whisk the eggs, the molten butter, milk and the baking powder.
3. Mix the feta and the parsley; this is going to be your filling.
4. Take a medium size square pyrex (or baking tin) and lay one layer of yufka by having the edges hanging out of the pyrex.  Pour 2 – 3 spoons of the sauce.
5. Take the second yufka and split it into two pieces. Lay one half on the first layer and make the yufka wet by pouring 2 – 3 spoons of the sauce again.
6. Spread the half of the feta mixture over the yufka in the pyrex.
7. Split the remaining layer of yufka into two and apply the same procedure by putting one layer on the feta mixture and then pouring 2 – 3 spoons of the sauce.
8. Close the edges of the first layer of yufka at the bottom of the pyrex over the filling and the layers of yufka. Cut the börek into square pieces.
9. Pour the remaining sauce and sprinkle black cumin (or the sesame seeds) over the börek now.
10. Bake the börek in the oven till the top turns to a nice brown colour.

Step 2 - the sauce to make the börek wet

Step 3 - mix the feta and the parsley

Step 4

Step 6

Step 8

Step 8

Step 9

börek with feta and parsley filling