Vegan Spinach & Tofu Filo Parcels
Try your hand at making these incredibly moreish vegan filo parcels with a smooth and creamy spinach and tofu filling.
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These vegan filo parcels are made with crispy, flaky pastry that encases a soft and creamy spinach filling that make the perfect lunch or on-the-go snack, so enjoy piping hot, warm or cold!
In fact, they are great on their own, with a big salad, or as part of a mezze table too!
What makes these pastries so good?
The pastry filling is creamy and mouth-watering with the combination of blended silky tofu and spinach, paired with the cheesy flavour that comes from the nutritional yeast.
This dish has hints of Greek origin and is reminiscent of spanakopita, a Greek pie. Typically it contains feta and spinach, so these little parcels are similar with the fusion of nutritional yeast and spinach, but of course they are vegan.
Why use filo pastry?
Filo is a thin dough that’s perfect for making pastries such as these spinach parcels.
The thinness of the dough creates the perfect crispy pastry that balances out the soft creaminess of the filling.
Its few thin layers and dry dough quality makes it less of a rising, airy pastry and more dense and crispy.
Filo pastries are made by stacking sheets of dough on top of each other, folding in the filling and then baking in the oven.
Filo is made from just flour and water, so it has no fat which makes it a healthier option than something like puff pastry.
Is pastry vegan?
Some pastry is vegan, others are not. Brands like Jus-Rol are accidentally vegan, but be sure to check the ingredients on ready-made pastries, because some use eggs and butter.
In particular, varieties of puff pastry will often use butter to create that ‘puff’ and to make the dough rise better.
Although many store bought pastry brands nowadays don’t use dairy products so that they last longer on the shelves, always check!
Total Time: 1 hour
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Calories: 249
Servings: 6
Rating:
Total Time: 1 hour
Calories: 249
Servings: 6
Ingredients
Method
Ingredients
(Servings: 6)
- 37.5 37.5 g baby spinach
- 5 5 g nutritional yeast
- 0.16666666666667 0.16666666666667 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
- 45 45 g filo pastry
- 33.333333333333 33.333333333333 g silken tofu
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 12.5 12.5 g non-dairy butter, melted
- sea salt and black pepper, to taste
- black and white sesame seeds, to decorate
Method
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 and brush a baking tray lightly with melted non-dairy butter.
- Place the spinach in a colander with a pinch of salt and pour over a kettle full of freshly boiled water to wilt it.
- Leave to drain really well and turn out onto a clean kitchen towel. Squeeze out the excess water from the spinach.
- Place the spinach in a food processor with the tofu, yeast, nutmeg and garlic and season well.
- Blend until smooth and combined.
- Lay the filo out on a clean worktop and cut in half lengthways so that you have two stacks of long strips.
- Brush one of the strips with the melted non-dairy butter and place another on top. Place a small pile of filling at one end and fold the pastry over to encase it. Keep folding it over on itself to create a triangular, sealed parcel.
- Brush with non-dairy butter and place on the baking tray while you make the rest.
- Sprinkle the tops with sesame seeds and transfer to the oven to bake for 30 minutes or until golden and crispy.
Each 134g serving provides:
11g Fat, 2.1g Saturates, 2.1g Sugars, 0.76g Salt.
Ready for your next vegan pastry challenge? Try making these beautiful vegan apple and lavender tartlets!
