The first time I cooked this Alex ate so much he almost made himself sick. It’s a winner! Super easy to make, it looks and tastes awesome. This is the Moroccan version – you could also change the seasoning to make it Indian, Chinese or anything you like.

I have served this in various ways; with a salad with tahini dressing (hummus diluted with lemon juice); with a spicy tomato & courgette stew; with Moroccan spiced roasted vegetables. Happily most of the Jus Rol products are vegan so there’s no fiddling around needed to make puff pastry (sorry Nan).

This recipe comes courtesy of the wonderful Vegan Richa (Richa Hingle).

Moroccan Spinach Pie – serves 4-6 (or 1 Alex)

Ingredients

• 2 vegan puff pastry sheets (eg a block of Jus Rol Puff Pastry, cut in 2 and rolled into 2 rectangular sheets)
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 small red onion , chopped
• 5 cloves of garlic , finely chopped
• 1 tsp ground cumin , or ½ tsp cumin + ½ tsp coriander
• 2 tsp Berbere spice blend  (Or use garam masala, shawarma, chili powder blend or just herbs (thyme, oregano, sage) for a different themed pie). Bart do a Berbere mix or you can make your own as follows:

½ tsp ground coriander, 1.5 tsp paprika, ½ tsp ground cumin, ½ tsp fenugreek powder, ½ tsp black pepper, ½ tsp cardamom, a generous pinch of clove powder ginger powder, all spice, cinnamon, and cayenne

• ½ tsp cayenne or chilli pepper flakes
• a good dash of black pepper
• 15 oz tin of chickpeas , (or 1.5 cups cooked)
• Salt to taste
• 6 oz spinach, chopped
• 1 bunch of coriander chopped
• ¼ – ½ cup (122 ml) non-dairy milk + 1 tbsp flour
• Optional soy sauce & liquid smoke

Instructions

The Puff pastry needs to be at room temperature before you roll it out so remove from fridge or freezer with lots of time to spare. You need two rolled thin sheets of about the same size – I tend to make them about 30cm long by about 20-25cm wide. Lay one sheet on a baking tray, covered with parchment paper if need be. Have the other to hand.

Heat oil in a frying pan. When hot add onion and garlic and a pinch of salt. Cook until translucent. Add the spices and mix well. Drain and mash the chickpeas using a fork or masher and add to the frying pan. Add salt and mix well. Cook for 4 minutes.

Add the spinach and coriander and mix in. Cook for 2 minutes. Taste and adjust salt and flavour.

Mix the flour into the non-dairy milk and add to the chickpea mixture. Cook for 2-3 minutes to bring to a boil and thicken (I add a splash of soy sauce at this stage and some liquid smoke, it works for me!). Let it cool for a few minutes.

Spread the mixture on the puff pastry sheet already on your baking tray – leave a border of pastry around the mixture. Place the other pastry sheet on top. Crimp the edges with a fork and cut crosses / vents in the top of the pie. (You can also make individual pastry pockets).

Bake at 400F / 200C / Gas Mark 6 for 20 to 24 mins for one large pie, (16 to 20 minutes for smaller). Let the pastry cool for 5 minutes, then slice and serve.