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!

MALLOW WITH SPINACH AND MINCED MEAT

(Recipe in English is below. Kiymali ispanakli ebegümeci tarifi için burayi tiklayin.)

Finally the old guy who sells all sorts of herbs and legumes is back in the bazaar! That means that the season is on! This week I bought some dock, some fennel foliage and something I’ve not tried before: mallow!

a bundle of mallow

mallow

I am hoping to make the fennel foliage with some beans. If I am not too lazy, I am hoping to make filled dock this time.

As it is the first time that I used mallow in my kitchen, I would like to note the following: In my cooking book, the way to clean and process the stalks of the mallow seemed a bit too long for me. If the end parts of the stalks that look like Y are too thick, then they are not desirable and are advised to be peeled off or chopped off. I didn’t peel of anything, to be really honest, and neither did I throw away the too thick Y-looking-like ends of the stems. Instead, I separated the stalks and the leaves and I steam-cooked the stalks in my pressure cooker. But after 10 minutes of steam cooking, I noticed that the stalks are indeed hard, and I continued to steam-cook the stalks some 10 – 15 minutes more.

In my cooking book, the recipe did not include any spinach. However I had some at hand which needed to be consumed as soon as possible. Adding spinach is also a good idea if it is the first time you’ll taste mallow and you don’t know what to expect of the taste! Smooth first-encounter! 

I am very very happy with the result! What I cooked tasted delicious, and I am looking forward to cooking some more mallow soon when it is still the season and when the plant is apparently so healthy! Needless to say, it tastes 1000x more delicious with some yoghurt and garlic sauce!!!

Ingredients (serves 4 – 5)

1 bundle of mallow, washed very well; stalks and leaves separated and chopped roughly

I seperated the leaves and the stalks of the mallow

I seperated the leaves and the stalks of the mallow

mallow leaves

mallow stalks - I chopped them roughly

200 – 300 grams of spinach, washed well, and chopped roughly

1 big onion, cubed

150 – 200 grams of minced meat

2 spoons of bulgur (can substitute with rice, but count in that the rice cooks slower than the bulgur so I suggest you soak the rice in water a few minutes beforehand)

2 – 3 spoons of olive oil

1 glass of warm water

Salt 

Method:

1. Steam cook the stalks of the mallow. Because of the reasons I mentioned above, I suggest you start with 15 – 20 minutes of steam-cooking first and steam-cook some more if needed.
2. Sauté the onions in the olive oil for a minute or two.
3. Add the minced meat and sauté until the meat changes colour and it is cooked.
4. Add the spinach leaves and the mallow leaves bit by bit (as it is always too difficult to fit them in the pot at one time). When the leaves sink a bit, add the stalks that you steam-cooked.
5. Sprinkle the bulgur over, add warm water and close the lid. Cook on low heat for about 15 – 20 minutes lid closed. When the dish is cooked, add salt, mix and voila! It is ready to serve! 

Step 1 - I steam-cooked the stalks

Step 3 - Saute the minced meat with onion

mallow with spinach and minced meat - ready to serve!

mallow with spinach and minced meat - with yoghurt and garlic sauce next to it!