Kale-Kopita (Vegan)
This is a great recipe from the kitchen at Vedge in LA. It is a take on the classic spanakopita, (which means cheese filled) and uses tofu as the substitute.
As I talked to a few people about this recipe, it became clear that there is a version of this pie across the world including knishes, Bourikas, calzones, samosas and dim sum to name a few. This means I had some pretty tough tasters. The best comment I got back was from my Albanian taster who said this tasted like his mums back home. Score!! It was only then that I told him that there was no cheese only tofu. (I am not sure if he will mention that to his mum).
The key to a successful pie or layered pie isn’t whether you use tofu or cheese; it is about how you spice the filling. The onion, garlic, dill, salt and pepper all add to a delicious filling that you could stuff into anything, or quite frankly eat on its own. So make sure you are happy with the flavour and everything else will fall into place!
Mr B was a definite fan of this dish, given his love of all things Greek (apart from me, of course, he loves me despite of my non-Greekness)
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp. olive oil, plus more for brushing the Phyllo
- 2 large bunches of Tuscan kale, stems removed, leaves chopped
- 1 cup onions, finely chopped
- 1 pound extra firm tofu, drained and crumbled
- 2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. pepper
- 5 cups of tofu cream cheese
- 2 tbsp. chopped dill
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- Half a pack of organic vegan Phyllo, thawed
Method
- Preheat the oven
- Brush a casserole dish with olive oil
- Bring a pot of water to the boil, add salt
- Blanch the kale for 5 minutes, drain
- Heat the olive oil in a deep pot, add the onions, garlic and cook for a few minutes until brown
- Add the crumbled tofu, salt and pepper. Stir until browned and the moisture is gone, c. 10 minutes
- Combine the kale and tofu mixture in a large bowl. Add the tofu cream cheese, dill and lemon juice
- Layer 3 sheets of Phyllo on the bottom of the dish. Add one third of the mixture, layer another 3 layers on top, add the next third, add Phyllo, the next third and finally top with the remaining Phyllo. Brush the top layer with olive oil and bake until golden brown, c. 15 minutes.
- Cut the dish into portions before baking, this will make it easier to serve
- Serve warm
