Spiced lamb and filo pie recipe

Choose a tender cut of lamb, such as leg steaks or neck fillet and then cut into dice. This recipe draws on the fragrant flavours used in middle eastern cookery.

Ingredients

• 1 pack frozen filo puff pastry, thawed
• 50g (2oz) butter
• 500g (18oz). lamb steaks, cut into medium sized dice
• 2 medium red onions, chopped
• 2tbsp olive oil
• 2tsp each of ground cinnamon and coriander
• Juice and grated rind of 1 lemon
• 50g (2oz) pine nuts
• 150g (6oz) ready to eat dried apricots, roughly chopped
• 150ml (1/4pnt) Greek style yoghurt
• Good handful fresh parsley and mint, combined and chopped.
• Salt and black pepper

Method

1. Preheat oven to 190ºC/375ºF/ gas 5. Heat the oil in a frying pan and gently sauté the onion together with the spices for 5-7 mins until onion just beginning to become tender.
2. Add the diced lamb and continue cooking, stirring all the while until the meat is browned on all sides.
3. Stir in the lemon juice and rind, the apricots, yoghurt and lastly some of the chopped herbs. Mix well, remove from heat and place in the base of a shallow, ovenproof dish and allow to cool.
4. To form the lid of the pie, melt the butter and add a few of the remaining chopped herbs. Open out the filo pastry and cut the stack of sheets in half across it's length to give two stacks of rectangular sheets. Lightly brush one piece of filo with the herb butter and 'scrunch' it lightly then place on top of the filling.
5. Repeat with remaining pastry and butter until all filling is covered.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25mins until the pastry is golden brown. Just before removing from oven, brush again with remaining butter and scatter with remaining chopped herbs.
7. Return to oven for 2-3 mins to just 'set' the herbs. Serve hot with vegetables of your choice.