Rick Stein’s cheese, potato and spinach filo pie recipe

“I wrote this recipe for a Greek-style filo pie after going to Mary Quicke’s farm and dairy near Exeter,” says Rick Stein. “It was a thoroughly enjoyable visit and I was very impressed with Mary’s resistance to automation, favouring the manual skills of her very experienced team. Very laudable when you consider the enormous popularity of her Cheddar cheese.”

He suggests using a vegetarian cheese called Double Devonshire for this pie.

Cheese, potato and spinach filo pie

Ingredients:

(Serves 6)

600g potatoes, peeled

260g spinach, washed

25g butter

1 large onion, sliced

175ml double cream

2 medium eggs, beaten

½-1tsp English or Dijon mustard

7-8 sheets of filo pastry

50g butter, melted

175g mature or vintage vegetarian Cheddar or Quicke’s Double Devonshire, coarsely grated

Method:

1. Cook the potatoes in a pan of well-salted water (one teaspoon of salt per 600 millilitres), then drain and leave to cool. Cut them into slices five to six millimetres-thick. Wilt the spinach in a pan, then squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible.

2. Heat the butter in a pan, add the onion and fry until soft and golden. Mix the cream with the eggs and mustard, and season with black pepper.

3. Preheat the oven to 210°C/Fan 190°C. Take a 23-25 centimetre pie dish and layer four sheets of filo in the base, brushing each sheet with melted butter and alternating directions. Allow the excess to overhang the sides. Add half the sliced potato, scatter over some onion and spinach, then add half the cream mixture and cheese.

4. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with the remaining potato, spinach and onion, season again with salt and black pepper and top with remaining cream and cheese.

5. Fold over the overhanging filo and then top with a further three or four sheets of filo, again brushing each one with melted butter. Brush the top of the pie with butter.

Rick Stein’s Food Stories is published by BBC Books, priced £28. Photography James Murphy. Available now