Silverbeet, Feta and Pinenut Roll

• 250g silverbeet / swiss chard or spinach leaves
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 large onion, finely chopped
• 1 cup ricotta
• ¾ cup feta, crumbled
• ½ cup grated parmesan
• ¼ cup chopped coriander
• ½ tsp grated nutmeg
• finely grated zest of ½ lemon
• 1/3 cup pinenuts, toasted
• ½ tsp salt
• ground black pepper
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 8 sheets filo pastry
• melted butter or oil spray

Preheat oven to 180°C fanbake. Trim half of the stalks from the leafy greens and discard them. Wash, dry and chop the leaves and the rest of the stalks. 

Heat the butter in a medium pot and cook the onion over a low heat until it is soft but not browned (about 5 minutes). Add the leafy greens and cook until the water from the leaves evaporates, leaving the pan dry. Removing the moisture in this way helps to stop the pie going soggy. Remove the pot from the heat and mix in the ricotta, feta, parmesan, coriander, nutmeg, lemon zest and pinenuts. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the egg.

Place a sheet of filo pastry on the bench and brush it with melted butter or spray it liberally with oil. Place a second sheet on top and brush it with butter or spray it with oil. Repeat to form a stack of 8 pastry sheets. The filo dries out quickly so you will need to work fast. Cover the unused filo with a damp teatowel while you work. Form the filling mixture into a sausage shape along the longest edge of the pastry, leaving a 3cm border at the sides.

Turn in the sides of the pastry like an envelope and roll it up gently and loosely to fully enclose the filling, forming a log shape. If you roll it too tight it will split. Transfer the log to a baking tray, brush the top with butter and bake until it is golden and crisp (about 40 minutes).