Anna Shepherd’s grilled summer vegetables with crispy fried feta + honey
This is summer on a plate, the very best of what’s in season topped with crispy, crunchy honeyed cheese. Make it for the vegetarian at the barbecue but know that everyone will want some.
Anna has kindly shared this recipe and we’d recommend buying a copy of her book Love Vegetables for plenty more new ideas.
From Anna: ‘A few years ago, I was lucky to work with one of my vegetable heroines, Anna Jones, who introduced me to blistered feta, wobbly and wonderful hot from the oven. I take it one step further, wrapping it in filo pastry to create a brittle shell that turns golden as the feta fries. Be sure to remove the feta from the fridge a couple of hours before cooking, so that it comes up to room temperature, otherwise the feta might stay cold in the middle.’
INGREDIENTS
SERVES 2
For the vegetables
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 20 basil leaves
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 3 peppers (red, yellow or orange)
- 2 courgettes
- 200g cherry tomatoes
- Pure Sea Salt and Cracked Pepper
For the crispy fried feta
- 4 tbsp runny honey
- 1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
- 1 sprig thyme
- 4 sheets filo pastry
- Extra virgin olive oil, for brushing and frying
- 200g block feta, at room temperature
METHOD
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Preheat a griddle pan on the highest heat on the hob.
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Combine the oil, basil, vinegar and garlic in a large mixing bowl (you’ll need the bowl to be large enough to hold all of the cooked vegetables), season generously with salt and pepper and stir to combine.
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Cut the peppers into chunky strips, discarding the seeds and stalk. Without any overlap, griddle them for 8–10 minutes on each side, until the skin begins to wrinkle and they turn soft and smoky. When the peppers are cooked, stir them through the oil mixture and cover the bowl with a plate to trap the steam. Next, slice the courgettes into ½cm (¼in) thick lengths, then griddle them for 3–4 minutes each side, until softened and striped. Add the courgettes to the bowl with the peppers and stir to coat in the marinade. Cover the bowl again with a plate.
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Finally, char the cherry tomatoes on the griddle for a few minutes until the skins are cracked and blistered. Stir through with the other vegetables and marinade and cover the bowl with the plate again. Set aside while you cook the feta.
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Pour the honey into a small saucepan (a lightly oiled measuring spoon will help the honey to slip off without any stickiness) and add the chilli and thyme. Heat until the honey starts to bubble, then remove from the heat. The longer you leave the honey to steep, the spicier it will be.
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Brush two sheets of the filo with olive oil all over, then stack one on top of the other. Place the room temperature feta in the centre of the sheets and pull in the corners of the pastry to cover the feta and wrap it up like a present. Flip the feta over so that the folded corners are on the bottom. Repeat the oiling and wrapping with the remaining sheets, ensuring the folded corners are on the other side so that the filo wrapper is of an even thickness.
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Heat enough olive oil to cover the base of a small frying pan. Carefully lower the filo-wrapped feta, seam side down, into the pan and fry for 3–4 minutes, using a spoon to splash the sides with oil to help them crisp and brown evenly. Use a slotted spatula to flip the feta to fry on the other side for another 3–4 minutes.
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While the feta is frying on the second side, tip the vegetables onto a serving platter, along with all of the marinade. Lift the cooked feta onto the vegetables using the slotted spatula and pour over the hot honey just before serving.
Any leftover vegetables can be kept covered in the fridge for up to 3 days.
RECIPE: Anna Shepherd, from her brilliant new book Love Vegetables. Photography by Liz and Max Haarala Hamilton
