Börek with spinach and feta cheese

Ingredients for 6 servings:

• 1 pack of Yufka pastry sheets, uncut in large sheets
• 200 g sheep’s cheese
• 600 g spinach, fresh
• 350 ml milk
• 100 ml oil, neutral
• 2 large eggs
• 2 tsp Pul Biber (Turkish paprika flakes)
• ½ tsp salt
• pepper
• 1 tsp sesame seeds for sprinkling
• 1 tsp black cumin for sprinkling

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour

This vegetarian börek is easier to make than you think and super delicious!

I butter a baking dish thoroughly and also place a piece of parchment paper cut to size on the bottom. Caution: Do not use a non-stick dish, as you will have to cut the börek out of the dish later. I preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat). I clean and wash the spinach and spin it dry, otherwise it will retain too much water. Then I roughly tear it into 3-4 cm pieces with my hands. I whisk the milk with the oil and eggs and add salt to the mixture. And off we go. The secret to the fluffiness of börek lies in crumpling the yufka leaves quite sloppily when layering them. So don’t be too artful and layer the leaves flat; instead, crumple and wrinkle them. The milk, egg, and oil mixture will then run into the folds and make the whole börek moist. So first, a crumpled layer of yufka goes into the dish. If you have large yufka leaves, leave a 6-8 cm high edge around the sides. I spread about half of the cheese on the crumpled yufka and then add half of the spinach. I season everything with a little pepper and pul biber. Then I carefully pour about 1/3 of the milk over it. Now the next layer of yufka goes on top and the process starts again: cheese, spinach, spices, 1/3 milk. Finally, I add the last layer of crumpled yufka. If there is an edge thanks to the large yufka leaves, I fold it inwards so that no milk mixture can run down the sides into the baking tray. This makes it easier to remove the börek from the pan later. Now I carefully press everything down from the top and sprinkle the börek with sesame and black cumin seeds. The latter is available under the name “Cörek” in Turkish grocery stores. Finally, I carefully pour the remaining milk mixture over the edges of the börek, taking care not to wash away the sesame and black cumin seeds. Place it in the oven and bake until golden brown and no liquid remains in the pan. This takes 25-30 minutes, sometimes a little longer. Let it cool, cut into pieces, and enjoy. Serve with a simple shepherd’s salad of tomatoes, cucumbers, red onions, and parsley.