Ingredients
375g Antoniou Fillo Pastry
3 brown onions, finely diced
500g lean beef mince
Salt & pepper
1 tablespoon nigella seeds, plus extra for garnish
¼ teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
Lemon thyme
1/3 cup pitted olives
½ lemon zest
250 g butter, melted
3 eggs
1 cup of vlahotiri (cheese)
Fresh herbs - mint, parsley
Dried oregano
To serve
Tzaziki
Salad
Method
Before you begin this Filo Pastry recipe, take your Filo Pastry out of the fridge to bring it up to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius.
Preparing the filling
In a heavy based frypan add a generous drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and cook the diced onion, slowly enabling it to cook gently and not burn.
Turn the gas on high and add the mince meat to the onion mixture. Break it down to a fine mince, season with salt, pepper, nigella seeds, paprika and allspice, and cook until the meat is tender. Add the olives, lemon thyme and lemon zest and stir through. Set aside and allow the meat mixture to cool.
Assembling the pie
On a clean work surface lay 1 sheet of Filo Pastry and brush generously with butter. Repeat this process until you have 5 layers rotating each layer 25 degrees to create a star pattern. Don't worry if you are overlapping.
Generously butter a 30cm heavy based frypan and carefully lift your flip bundle and place into the bottom of the frypan. Add 2 more Fillo sheets in the middle making sure you scrunch them up. Drizzle with melted butter.
In a bowl whisk the eggs, add your cheese, and then gently fold in the meat mixture and the fresh herbs. Taste once again and season accordingly.
Pour the filling mix into the pan.
Take another 3 sheets of Fillo, brush each one with butter and scrunch into the centre of the pan. Fold over the edges to enclose the pita. This does not need to be perfect and nor should it be flat. Ruffled pastry will go nice and crispy in the oven. Brush the surface with more melted butter and sprinkle with some flakey salt, dried oregano and nigella seeds.
Place the pan over a high heat for 2 minutes to cook the bottom of the Pastry. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool before serving.
Cut into wedges and serve with some tzatziki and/or salad.
Recipe by Kathy Tsaples for Everyday Gourmet.