Spanakopita (spinach, feta and filo pie)

A Greek classic! Crispy filo pastry with a cheesy spinach filling. Groovy!

Serves: 2
Cost per person: 6 zl (1.13 GBP, 12 Norwegian Kroner)

You'll need:

- a good old bunch of spinach
- around 80g of feta
- one egg
- a handful of parsley
- 2 chopped spring onions
- around 200g (or 4 sheets) of filo pastry
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- a pinch of cayenne (optional)

Let's boogie!

1. Wash the spinach and de-stalk. Blanch for 1-2 minutes in a minute quantity of water. Refresh with cold water and drain. Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees.

2. Beat an egg

3. Chop up the parsley and spring onion

4. Squeeze as much moisture as you can out of the spinach

5. Chop the spinach

6. Add everything (including the seasoning) into the bowl and mix up. Crumble in the feta

7. Oil an oven proof dish

8. Take a sheet of filo pastry. Brush with olive oil. 

9. Place centrally in the dish. Don't worry about the extra pastry overspilling - you'll fold it over later. Repeat from step 8. Get around 4 layers of pastry in the dish at slightly different angles.

10. Add the spinach and feta mixture

11. Fold over the sides layer by layer to enclose the pie.

12. Give the top a final brush of olive oil

13. Bake till brown on top. Enjoy!

Cost:

- spinach: 3 zl
- feta: 2.8 zl
- filo: 4 zl
- egg: 0.8 zl
- the rest: 1.4 zl

Total:12 zl

Lobia (classic black eyed bean curry)

Cheap, easy and tasty - let's go!

Serves: 4
Cost per person: 2.25 zl (45p)

You'll need:

- a cup of dried beans or a tin of ready-cooked
- water
- 2 ripe tomatoes
- a handful of fresh coriander leaves
- 2 medium onions
- 1 big fat clove of garlic
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 piece of cinnamon
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- salt to taste
- veg oil

1. Soak the beans overnight (if using dried beans) and boil in unsalted water for around 2 hours or until soft.

2. Get your spices ready!

3. Chop up the onions fine

4. Finely chop the garlic

5. Skin the tomatoes and puree in a blender. Get the coriander ready

6. Heat up some oil. Cumin and cinnamon in. Fry for a minute.

7. Onions in. Fry halfway (around 7 minutes) on medium heat then add the garlic.

8. When the onions are golden (around 15 minutes), add the spices and give them a quick fry.

9. Tomatoes in. Cover and simmer for around 5 minutes. Salt to taste.

10. Add the coriander leaves.

11. Add the beans and simmer for a further 5 minutes.

12. Enjoy with rice!

Costing:

- beans: 3 zl
- tomatoes: 2 zl
- rice to serve four: 2.50 zl
- the rest: 1.50 zl

Total: 9 zl
Serves: 4
Per person: 2.25 zl

Sabzi (vegetable) Korma

Let's bust a few myths first of all:

"Korma" doesn't mean "slightly sweet, mild curry for wimps". It actually refers to the cooking style and means "braise".

Braise: fry first and simmer in liquid in a closed vessel.

Vegetable Korma: braised vegetables.

And yes, I am going to use chilli powder and it won't be extremely mild. So there!

Serves: 4
Cost per person: 2.50 zl (50 p)

You'll need:

- an aubergine
- 1/3 of a cauliflower
- a sprinkling of peas and green beans
- 2 small-medium onions
- 1 inch ginger
- 1 fat clove of garlic
- a handful of fresh coriander leaves
- 4 tsp almond flakes soaked and blended
- 100g of cream
- some black pepper and salt to taste
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
- 1/2 tsp fennel seeds
- 4 green cardamons
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp paprika 
- some water
- some veg oil

Let's prep and go!

1. Cut up the aubergine, salt and leave for 30 minutes

2. Meanwhile, dry roast the coriander seeds, fennel seeds and cardamons. 

3. Blitz in a coffee grinder

4. It's lonely so get the other spices ready on the same plate.

5. Chop up the cauliflower and get the coriander ready

6. Chop those onions real fine and get ready to mince the garlic and ginger into a paste.

7. Fry the aubergine until golden brown along with the cumin seeds. Season with black pepper.

8. Remove from the pan when golden (around 7-8 minutes) using a slotted spoon so that most of the oil remains in the pan for frying the onions in.

9. Fry the onions until golden (around 15 minutes) with some salt then add the ginger/ garlic paste. Fry for another minute.

10. Add the spices and fry for half a minute to make a paste.

11. Add some water and the cauliflower.

12. Finely chop the coriander and add along with the peas and green beans. Cover and simmer for around 10 minutes.

13. Almond cream in.

14. Aubergines in. Cover and simmer for a further 5 minutes. Check the seasoning. 

15. Turn off the heat. Stir in the cream. Done!

Cost:

- Veg: 5 zl
- Rice to serve: 2.50 zl
- Cream and almonds: 1 zl
- Spices and coriander: 1 zl
- Rest: 0.50 zl

Total: 10 zl
Serves: 4
Per person: 2.50 zl

Beetroot kofta with tomato and cashew sauce

Kofta = balls

Any questions?

Really, it's a great leftovers dish, especially if you have any cooked potatoes or veg to use up. Don't throw them away! Make kofta's instead!

Serves: 4

Per person: 3 zl (57 p)

For the koftas you'll need:

- some mashed potatoes (could be leftovers)

- 1/2 beetroot grated

- salt

- chopped chives

- 1-2 chopped green chillies

- 1/2 tsp coriander powder

- 1/2 tsp cumin powder

- 1/2 tsp garam masala

- some red chilli powder (optional)

- a handful of almond flakes

- flour to roll

For the sauce you'll need:

- a small handful of cashew nuts soaked
- 2 ripe juicy tomatoes
- 1-2 onions finely chopped
- 2 tsp ginger/ garlic paste
- 1 tsp mustard or kalonji seeds (optional)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder (deggi mirch)
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp fenugreek leaves (kasouri methi)
- oil for deep frying
- salt to taste

Serve with rice - nice!

Let's start with the koftas!

1. Imagine you've got a bowl of leftover cooked potatoes, could have been cooked any way at all. Mashed, roasted, pan-fried, whatever... You could also start from scratch. I'd recommend boiling till just done. Drain. Mash.

2. Grate some beetroot. Place in a sieve. Salt to draw out the liquid. After ten minutes strain thoroughly and extract as much liquid as you can.

3. Now we need to add flavour so... season with a little salt. Then throw in some chopped chives/ spring onion and green chillies.

4. Add the beetroot and spices.

5. Add a little cottage cheese - make sure you've managed to strain as much water as you can out of it. You don't want soggy koftas!! Crumble in a good handful of almond flakes.

6. Roll into balls and roll onto flour to coat. 

7. Lay on a floured plate and freeze overnight. When you want to cook them, don't defrost - they're good to fry from frozen!

Now let's get cracking on the sauce - a wonderfully rich and aromatic concoction of tomato, cashew nut and spices. Yeah!

8. Soak a small handful of cashew nuts for around 30 minutes in water.

9. Blend in a coffee grinder to a smooth paste

10. Skin two tomatoes and blend

11. Prep the onions and the ginger/ garlic paste

12. Get your spices out!

13. Oil in a pan. Hot. Mustard seeds (I couldn't resist!) in. Snap crackle pop.

14. Onions in. Fry down till golden (15 minutes). Add the ginger/garlic paste and cook out the rawness for a minute.

15. Spices in. Mix in real good and briefly cook to get rid of the "powderiness".

16. Tomato in. Cover and simmer on low for around 5 minutes

17. Cashew paste in along with the dried fenugreek leaves. Add the garam masala and check the seasoning. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Add a little water to maintain a good consistency.

18. Ok looks done...

Right. Last part. Frying the koftas!

19. Heat some oil for deep frying. Koftas in on high heat. As soon as you get bubbling, turn the heat down to medium-low and fry for 5 minutes (this is enough to defrost and cook).

20. Whip them out, drain on kitchen paper and enjoy with rice and the sauce!

Cost:

- veg: 2 zl
- cottage cheese: 2 zl
- tomatoes: 2 zl
- rice for 4 people: 2.40 zl
- oil: 2 zl
- the rest: 1.60 zl

Total: 12 zl
Serves: 4
Per person: 3 zl