Balkan pie and tofu lettuce cups: Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipes for summer picnics

The scene might seem spontaneous and relaxed to passersby, but if you’re having a picnic, you need to have a plan. There are rules! And here are mine: the food needs to transport well (obviously), it must not wilt or go soggy, and it must be communal. You’ll need a bread knife, too, for slicing things, but, if you can, do without individual cutlery, because it’s lovely to eat with your hands. Swigging from a bottle is not so great, however, so cups are always welcome. Don’t feel compelled to pack carrot sticks, hummus or baguettes, though, because experience tells me that others will bring at least four times more of all of those than anyone can eat. And delight in food that crumbles – on a picnic, crumbs don’t matter!
This Balkan pie is made from filo sheets soaked in an egg batter before baking. It can be savoury or sweet, with an end result that is somewhere between a pie and a quiche. Bear in mind, though, that it needs to be made on the day of the picnic: it’s absolutely fine to sit around for a few hours, but it will go soggy if left overnight.
Prep 30 min
Cook 40 min
Serves 6-8
340g tin sweetcorn, drained4 eggs
300g soured cream
200g feta, crumbled into roughly 2-3cm pieces100ml whole milk
200g spring onions, trimmed and finely chopped1½ tsp baking powder
Fine sea salt and black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
270g pack filo pastry sheets
1 tbsp sesame seeds
100g baby cornichons, or 10 small pickled chillies if you like things spicy
Heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Put a medium frying pan on a high heat and, once hot, add the sweetcorn and cook, stirring often, for eight minutes, until nicely charred. Tip into a large bowl and add three of the eggs, the soured cream, feta, milk, spring onions, baking powder, three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and a good grind of pepper.
Lightly brush oil over one side of two sheets of the filo, then lay them oiled side down in a 5cm-deep ovenproof dish (a 25cm round dish or a 20cm x 28cm rectangular one will do), overlapping the sheets so the base and sides of the dish are lined and there’s a little overhang at the sides.
Gently soak a third sheet of filo in the corn mix so the whole sheet comes into contact with the batter, then gently gather it together, catching bits of cheese, corn and spring onion as you go (this will help define the pastry layers later). Transfer the soaked filo to the filo-lined dish and gather into a loose swirl. Repeat with all but two of the remaining filo sheets, then sprinkle any excess batter over the top.
Brush the last two filo sheets with oil and lay them oiled side up on top of the filling. Gather all the filo hanging over the sides of the dish and scrunch it inwards, to create a rough border all around the edge of the pie. Beat the remaining egg, then brush it over any visible filo.
Sprinkle over the sesame seeds, then bake the pie for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, leave to cool for an hour, to warm or room temperature, then slice and serve with a few pickles on top.
These are great picnic fare. Pack the filling and lettuce cups separately, then assemble them in situ, or serve as a salad with the lettuce chopped up and the tofu mixture stirred through it. The filling keeps well for up to three days, so can be made well in advance, if that helps.
Prep 15 min
Cook 20 min
Serves 4-6 as a snack
10g dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in 85ml boiling water for at least 15 minutes 3 tbsp vegetable oil
400g block firm tofu, patted dry and crumbled1 medium carrot, trimmed, peeled and finely chopped (130g)50g spring onions, trimmed and finely slicedFine sea salt
50g roasted salted peanuts
3 tbsp kecap manis, or 1½ tbsp soy sauce mixed with 1½ tbsp soft brown sugar½ tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp rice-wine vinegar
15g coriander leaves, roughly chopped2 baby gem lettuce, leaves separated
Lift the shiitake out of their soaking water (save the liquid for later), then slice the mushrooms and set aside.
Put the vegetable oil in a frying pan on a high heat, then fry the tofu, stirring often, for 10 minutes, until lightly golden all over.
Add the sliced shiitake, the carrot, half the spring onions and three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and fry, stirring, for three minutes, until the vegetables have softened slightly.
Add the peanuts, two tablespoons of kecap manis, the sesame oil and the reserved mushroom soaking water, and fry, stirring, for two minutes more, until the liquid has reduced and coats the tofu nicely. Take off the heat and leave to cool.
Once the tofu mix is cool, stir in the remaining kecap manis and spring onions, and add the vinegar and coriander. Decant everything into a suitable container, cover and refrigerate until needed.
To serve, spoon one or two tablespoons of the tofu mix into each lettuce leaf, wrap and tuck in.