Spinach soup is one of my favorite  soups. It is served in Finnish school as lunch,usually with some meat filled pierogi and hard-boiled egg. I have lots of vegetarian friends,and they  ask very often from me recipes. So this time I converted this classical recipe into something new. I used soy milk instead of the normal milk and for my surprise it worked well.

As a side dish , I made Turkish influenced Böreks. They are snail-like looking buff pastry rolls ,which can be filled with different things. Potato,spinach, feta cheese you name it! My Turkish friends have been making amazing  Böreks for me, every time when I visit them,and I have been spying the dear ladies when they have been baking. Simple things to do and very tasty!

So here you go. First the soup recipe and then the Böreks. Enjoy!

Spinach Soup

• 30 g butter
• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 2 medium size potatoes
• (3 heaped Tbs corn starch or wheat flour )
• 800 ml milk, preferably full-fat (or as I did this time: 400ml vegetable stock and 400 ml soya milk)
• 150 g frozen chopped spinach (or fresh, then you will need about 500-700g)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp grated nutmeg
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, cut in half

1. Melt the butter in a teflon-coated pan (big enough to hold the whole soup). Don’t let it get brown. Add the chopped up onion and garlic,sauté till the onion softens.
2. Add the chopped up potato,vegetable stock and let the soup boil till potatoes are soft. You might need to add water so that  it covers the potatoes properly while they boil.
3. When the potatoes are soft stir in the spinach. (I like using fresh spinach but frozen is just fine too)Add the milk or the soya milk. Bring the soup boiling and by using puree mixer, puree the soup. If your soup looks too thin, add little cornstarch mixed with cold water, pour it in the soup mixing constantly.Cook the soup on mild heat appr. 10 min, mixing once in a while.
4. Serve with halved egg.

Feta Börek

• 1 egg
• 2 rolls of puff pastry
• 400 g good quality Feta cheese

1. Roll out your puff pastry and cut it length wise half. If you want to make thin Böreks cut the puff pastry strips thinner.
2. In the middle of the puff pastry crumble your feta.
3. Roll the pastry into a tube form,then roll your Börek in snail shape. Take care that the seam in underneath, when you lay the coil on baking sheet, otherwise the Feta cheese will run out when you bake this,
4. Paste with egg.
5. Bake in 220c about 30 minutes. Baking time depends how big or thick you make your snails. Thicker they are longer they will need.