Middle Eastern Chickpea Filo Log

I'm so excited to share this recipe with you! My super summery, spicy but slightly fruity filo pie with all the crunchy toppings. Absolutely perfect for sunny garden parties, to mix up your Sunday lunch or, simply, to eek out over the week (it keeps surprisingly really well in the fridge!). But the best thing about this recipe is that it's unbelievably easy to make yet looks like you've spent the whole day rustling it up!

I cooked up the pie filling the evening before just so I had a little more time on my hands to make salad ~ dips ~ hummus ~ nibbles but I really recommend doing this regardless! Leaving the veggies overnight gives them that all important time to soak up the tomato juices & aromatic spices. The chickpeas & apricots act like a sieve with the onions & peppers softening even more ... as you can see!

Here I've served a slice alongside a chunky couscous salad in a tahini dressing with an easy coconut yog & cucumber dip. I do something different with my salads each & every day but I'll pop a recipe up soon for the kinda things I like to do ~ twisting, adjusting & mixing is what its all about! The pie also went brilliantly with fattoush, a little hummus topped with toasted pine nuts ~ sesame seeds ~ almond flakes & chilli infused oil. But how about a garlic almond dip to complement the nuttiness of the pastry? Or with artichokes in a lemon & za'atar dressing? I'd love to hear your suggestions!

Look how crispy that filo is! I'm using good old Jus-Rol because I 100% believe it's near impossible to make your own filo ... the packet stuff tears when you even just look at it! I used all 7 sheets (layering, brushing with veg butter as I go) but found the Jus-Rol sheets a little too small ~ the longest side was fab for length (48cm) but I made the width a little wider by overlapping my pastry so it was around 30cm. Using all 7 sheets, I found, gave an ace pastry : filling ratio with no mixture spilling out whatsoever!

Middle Eastern Chickpea Filo Log

Serves: 4-6 depending on what you serve with!

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: around 1hr

Ingredients:

1 pack Jus-Rol filo pastry
80g Phase butter (or any vegan butter ~ just not marg/Flora!), melted
1 tbsp olive oil
1 sweet red pepper, sliced small but randomly for appearance!
2 red onions, sliced thinly into half moons
2 garlic cloves, minced
1tsp garlic purée
3 large handfuls dried apricots, cubed
1 small handful juicy raisins (Whitworths are to die for!)
1 large handful fresh coriander, shredded
1 large handful fresh parsley, shredded
200g spinach, washed
400g tin organic chickpeas, drained (don't rinse)
400g tin chopped tomatoes (I used tinned cherry toms in tom juice then pressed them while cooking for juiciness)
100g flaked almonds
1tbsp tomato purée
1tsp dried coriander
1tsp cumin
1tsp harissa paste
1tsp za'atar
1/2tsp onion powder
1/2tsp paprika
1/2tsp chilli flakes
1/2tsp cinnamon
seasoning

& to top:

flaked almonds
poppy seeds
sesame seeds
black pepper
chilli flakes

Method:

Note : I like to cook the filling the evening before so the chickpeas, veggies & dried fruits soak up all the aromatic juices!
First things first, chop & prep all the veggies & apricots to the size stated above.
While prepping, heat the oil on a low-med heat in a large, deep pan.
Fry the onions on a low heat under the pan lid until softened (around 10 mins), stirring & checking frequently so they don't brown or stick.
Once softened, throw in the peppers & cook under the lid for another 5 mins so they soften as well. Remove the lid, turn the heat up to medium & fry the fresh garlic & purée for 1 min, mixing so it doesn't burn. Stir in the tom purée & harissa with all the dried herbs & spices then cook for a further 3 mins to form a paste-like mixture.
Pour in the chopped toms with the dried fruits. Mix & cover with a lid then turn up the heat to bring to a slow simmer. Cook for 15 mins until juicy but no longer liquidy/runny. Add the chickpeas, remove from the heat & stir in the spinach in gradual handfuls until wilted.
Mix in the almond flakes, fresh herbs & seasoning before starting on your pastry!
Preheat the oven to 200'C. Dampen or flour a tea towel & lay down 1 sheet of filo (no 1) so the shortest edge/width is facing you. Brush with the melted butter then layer another sheet (no 2) a little to the right so the width is now around 30cm. Brush with butter & repeat - this time overlapping sheet no 1 then no 2 & so on to give equal thickness.* No worries if the filo tears a little, the butter acts as a gluing agent!
You should now have layered filo in a rectangle around 30cm x 48cm. Spoon the cool mixture into a log at the bottom of the pastry - leaving a 2cm border beneath & at the sides. Shape the mixture with your hands so it isn't loose & looks strudel-esque (you may have some leftover ~ it's fab with couscous, over sourdough or as a wrap filling!).
Now, use the tea towel to slowly lift the pastry so it rolls & tightly tucks the mixture into a log. Brush off excess flour, fold up the sides securely with the 2cm border & by doing this, the pastry should guide you to fold the long border in front of you* (this will keep the mixture in while baking!). Brush the sides & the width crease with butter & repeat, brushing as you go.
Carefully tip the log onto a greased tray with the pastry join underneath. Brush again with butter & sprinkle with the toppings. Bake for 25 mins until golden brown & serve with my suggestions above!