If you have ever wondered about making your own filo pastry, then this is a great place to start. It will give you an idea of how to get super thin pastry, and while it is not technically filo it will help you make some of those delicious and crispy pastry baked goods you will find all over the world.

The reason behind this week’s recipe was that a friend of ours dropped over a whole box of freshly grown and picked delicious green. Wondering what to do with them and not wanting them to wilt I decided to make my version of a classic Borek. I say my version because I am not pretending to be an expert on Turkish cuisine, but I know what I like, and a steaming hot cheesy filling with healthy greens encased in flaky pastry all dipped in yoghurt is my idea of heaven.

I have also taken a pinch of inspiration from one of my favourite Instagram accounts @Turkuazkitchen – the blend of butter and oil for the pastry is genius.

Makes: 2 X Spiral Borek

Serves: 2 - 4

Prep Time: 1hr

Bake Time: 25 minutes

300 g Strong bakers flour, sieved

200 ml Water, tepid (27°C)

5 g Salt

5 g Caster sugar

20 ml Olive oil

10 ml White vinegar

200 g Butter unsalted, softened

75 ml Olive Oil

Big bunch Healthy greens*

1 Lemon

200 g Feta, Bulgarian

Sesame seeds

* I used a mix of Spinach, Silverbeet, Kale and Rainbow Chard. It’s all good!

1. Place the flour, salt and sugar into a bowl and mix well with your fingers.
2. Add the water and mix until it comes together, add the vinegar and oil and knead to a dough.
3. Knead for a few minutes to work the gluten and bring the dough together to a smooth ball. Cover with a tea towel and rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
4. Portion the dough into four equal sized pieces and then roll them into balls. Reserve covered on a plate for 15 minutes.
5. Roll each ball out onto a lightly floured work surface. Use a rolling pin to get the pastry rolled out to 20 cm in diameter and approx. 2 mm thick. Repeat with all three dough balls.
6. Reserve them rolled out onto a plate with lightly floured baking paper in between each disc.
7. Mix the softened butter with the olive oil and leave to one side.
8. Take a disc of pastry and liberally spread approx. 80 g of the butter/oil mix into the centre. Leave a lip of 1 cm from the edge of the pastry and level smooth with a palette knife.
9. Take a second disc of pastry and brush off any excess flour. Cover the first disc with the second disc and crimp or seal with your fingers. Repeat with the other two pieces of pastry. Cover and leave to rest at room temperature.
10. Finely slice the greens and sauté them in a wide saucepan with a splash of olive oil until wilted. Season the greens and remove from the heat.
11. Grate the lemon zest into the wilted greens and crumble in the feta. Mix well and reserve.
12. Lightly oil a work surface and lay a sealed disc on top. Use your hands and fingers to pull and stretch the dough out. Work carefully and gently to pull the dough out to a uniform rectangle, the pastry should be super thin almost translucent.
13. Once the pastry has been pulled paper thin brush a small quantity of olive oil onto the surface.
14. Scatter half of the filling evenly onto the surface of the pastry trying to cover most of the surface.
15. Roll the longest side of the pastry over and then continue to roll the entire pastry and filling to a long sausage shape.
16. Gently roll the sausage from one end to another in a spiral shape. Tuck the end piece of pastry underneath the spiral.
17. Spread half of the remaining butter/oil mixture on top of the Borek and scatter with sesame seeds.
18. Repeat to make two Borek.
19. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes in an oven preheated to 180C until golden and crispy.
20. Serve with yoghurt sauce (see below).

400g Yoghurt, thick Greek

½ Garlic clove, grated

1 Lemon, zest finely grated

1 tsp Parsley, Continental, chopped

1 tsp Mint, chopped

1 tsp Dill, chopped

1 tsp White wine vinegar

to taste Salt flakes

to taste Black pepper, freshly ground