Zeljanica (cheese & spinach pie)

• vegetable oil↗

  for the tin

• eggs↗4 medium
• curd cheese↗500g g

  crumbled (this can be found in specialist shops), or use 250g ricotta mixed with 250g mascarpone

• feta↗250g g

  crumbled

• soured cream↗2 tbsp tbsp

  or crème fraîche

• spinach↗500g frozen g

  defrosted and excess moisture wrung out in a clean tea towel

• olive oil↗100ml ml
• natural yogurt↗300ml ml
• baking powder↗1 tsp tsp
• filo pastry↗500g g
• unsalted butter↗20g g

Step-by-step instructions

1. 1

   Lightly oil a roasting tin (ours was about 25 x 35cm and 4cm deep) and line with baking parchment. Mix the eggs, cheeses, soured cream or crème fraîche, spinach and some seasoning together in a bowl.

2. 2

   In another bowl, mix together the oil, yogurt and baking powder. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

3. 3

   Cut the filo sheets in half so they are roughly the size of the tin. Put one filo sheet in the tin and evenly brush over 1-2 tbsp of the yogurt mixture using pastry brush. Top with another filo sheet, brush over more yogurt mixture and repeat until you’ve used half the filo.

4. 4

   Pour over the cheese filling, then gently spread it to the edges using a spatula. Continue layering the rest of the filo sheets and yogurt mix. Spread any remaining yogurt mix over the top of the final filo sheet.

5. 5

   Cut the pie into squares (either nine or 12, depending on how big you want the pieces to be). Will keep frozen for up to a month. Defrost completely in the fridge overnight before cooking. Top each square with a small knob of butter, then bake for 20 mins. Reduce the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and bake for another 25-30 mins until browned on top. Leave to cool slightly before serving warm. Will keep covered and chilled for up to two days.