Turkish Spinach Borek (Spinach Pie)

In Turkish, börek is the name used for pastries made with phyllo dough.    A variety of vegetables, herbs and spices are used in böreks such as spinach, nettle, leek, potato, eggplant, courgette, ground black pepper.

Kol böreği (“arm burek”) is a type of burek prepared in long rolls, either rounded (also named Gül (rose)böreği) or lined and filled with either mincemeat, feta cheese, spinach or potato and baked under low heat.

Source: wikipedia.org

Gul boregi is one of my favorite.  I prefer to prepare  phyllo by myself. Preparing your own yufka might not be easy for you but the result is worth for it and you can taste the difference between storebought yufka and homemade yufka. But if you can’t prepare the dough by yourself go for the storebought yufka. You still get very tasty borek. Most of the Middle Eastern Stores carries this product and you also can get it through Amazon.com.

Never  substitute it for thin phyllo. It will not be the same. The thin phyllo gives you Greek version of Spanakopita ( Greek spinach pie). Spanakopita is also delicious pie but does not have the texture of Turkish borek.

Below phyllo recipe belongs to Culinaryart.wordpress.com

Phyllo Recipe

INGREDIENTS
2 glasses flour
6 and 1/2 soupspoons butter or margarine
1/2 glass water
2 eggs
A few salt

PROCESSING METHOD
– Sift the flour, keeping back 2 tablespoons. Pour the flour into a large salad bowl and make a hollow place in the center. Put an egg, 1/2 glass water, 1  tablespoon of melted butter and salt into the hollow.
– Make the dough by mixing and kneading these ingredients.
– Sprinkle the dough with flour and let stand 15 minutes, covered with a damp cloth.
– With a rolling pin roll the dough to a thickness of 2 cm.
– Spread on 3 tablespoons of softened butter. Cut the dough into 3 pieces, placing one on top of the other.
– Roll the 3 pieces.
– Spread on the remaining butter. Cut again into 3 pieces and place one on the other. Knead a few minutes and shape into a ball.
– Divide the dough into a little bigger than the size of a tennis ball and roll out each of these balls to obtain the yufka thin discs of dough approximately 55-60 cm in diameter.
– Let dry a little before using.

Spinach Filling:

1 lb  chopped fresh spinach

1 medium chopped onion

1/2 cup olive oil

1 cup crumbled feta cheese

Salt and black pepper

2 eggs

1 cup of milk

1/2 cup of olive oil

Put oil in a pan when it is hot add chopped onions, saute it for 3 minutes and add spinach  and  saute it for another 5  minutes. Cool it, add feta cheese, salt and black pepper.

-In another bowl beat the eggs and add milk and olive oil. Mix well.
-Grease a round tray.
-Lay  one phyllo dough on the flat surface and brush phyllo generously with the egg+milk+oil mixture and sprinkle spinach mixture.
-Roll the phyllo tight and swirl.Repeat this process on each yufka.
Place them in the tray. Egg wash them and sprinkle some nigella seeds and sesame seeds on to gul boreks.

Bake at 375F for 35 minutes. When its golden brown take it out of the oven and cover with damp kitchen towel for 15 minutes and serve it hot, warm or cold.

Enjoy!