ZUCCHINI ( COURGETTE ) FRITTERS WITH CHEESE ( PEYNIRLI MUCVER )

INGREDIENTS

• 2 medium zucchinis (courgettes ) about 250 g
• half a tsp of salt
• 2 heaped tbsp plain flour
• 1 small onion or half a red onion, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp grated Edam cheese or any medium fat cheese(50g)
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
• pinch of chili pepper ( optional )
• 1 egg
• Oil for frying.

1) Wash and grate the zucchinis coarsely. Mix with salt and let it stand for 12-15 minutes. Then squeeze out excess liquid. ( I used colander to get rid of all the liquid )

2) Add flour to the zucchini and mix. Add red onion, grated cheese dill, chili powder and egg to the zucchini mixture and mix well until all combined.

3) heat the oil in a non stick frying pan and drop tablespoons of zucchini mixture and flatten slightly. Cook on medium heat until browned lightly on both sides and cooked through.

Makes 10-12 fritters.

Serve with garlic, mint yogurt.

SPRING ROLL BOREKS

HI ALL, I want to share these delightful boreks ( pastries ) with you as they are delicious. In Turkey, we make boreks with Filo Pastry, but unfortunately this is not so available in England. I can get them in supermarkets in smaller sizes  in the freezer section but not the same as freshly made like  in Turkey.

I had a packet of spring roll pastry in my freezer which i thought would be a good alternative to Filo pastry, I was very happy to discover both pastries cook the same and i didn't lose out on the great taste of home made Boreks.

Packs of square spring roll pastries,  40 in a pack, 215 mm x 215 mm are widely available in continental stores. If frozen, leave out for an hour or so to defrost.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 pack of 30 or 40 spring roll pastry

FOR THE FILLING

• 1  or 2 packet of feta cheese or 1 pack of Edam cheese or mixture of both
• I packet of baby spinach
• 1 tsp paprika or chili pepper
• fresh parsley, chopped
• salt and black pepper

 SAUCE TO DIP THE PASTRY

• 1 cup ( coffee mug ) water and milk mixture, half and half
• 1 cup natural yogurt
• Half a cup olive oil ( or less if you like )
• 2 eggs
• extra egg  for  glazing,  mixed with 1-2 tbs water

METHOD

First prepare the filling: by washing and chopping the spinach and grating the cheese. Mix all together with parsley, salt and peppers. Set aside.

Prepare the sauce: by whisking 2 eggs , add milk and water mixture, oil and yogurt. Mix well.

Separate the wrappers, dip individual wrapper in the sauce mixture to wet it then place 2 tbsp of the cheese filling on each wrapper and fold one point over as shown above. Then roll up towards the last point like a log.Then  swirl it around to shape it and tuck the end bit underneath. Repeat this process until you use all the wrappers. Then whisk the egg with 1 tbsp water and glaze over boreks.

Pre- heat the oven, cook the boreks in a greased baking tray at 180C for 25-30 minutes or until golden and crispy.

COOK'S NOTES: For the filling I used feta cheese but you can use any cheese as long as it is not full fat cheese as the cheese will melt away and it will be too rich. I also used potato filling for half of the boreks which were quite nice. I grated boiled and cooled potatoes, mixed with chopped onion, spinach, parsley, chili pepper, salt.

I didn't measure the cheese filling as it is always good to freeze left over cheese filling for later use.

CHEESE SPRING ROLLS ( Sigara boregi )

YOU NEED

• 3 Sheets of jus-rol filo pastry
• 100 g cheese, half feta, half Edam, grated
• 1 spring onion ( optional ) chopped finely
• Handful of fresh herb of mint, parsley, chopped
• Black pepper
• Oil for frying.

METHOD

Separate filo sheets. Cut each sheet in half diagonally to obtain a squire shape. Then fold them across to a triangle shape. ( This will make 6 triangles )

Grate the Edam cheese, mix with chopped herbs and the spring onion. Add crumbled feta cheese, mix it altogether in a bowl. Season with black pepper.

Divide the cheese mixture between 6 triangles, placing it on the filo. ( long side ). Fold in each side then roll it up tightly towards the last point, forming a log shape. Dip the ends in water to stick down the rolls.

Shallow fry them in a frying pan in a medium hot oil , until the pastry is golden brown on all sides. Drain them on kitchen paper and serve while it is warm. MAKES 6.