These neat triangular pastries combine minced lamb with two of the seductive flavours, cinnamon and mint, frequently found in Middle Eastern dishes

Serves 4-6 (Makes 18)
250g twice-minced lean lamb
1 crisp apple, cored, in tiny dice
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cracked black peppercorns
1 tsp sea-salt flakes
25g fresh mint leaves, scissor-chopped
90g salted butter, melted
6 tbsp cold-pressed rapeseed or safflower oil
200g pack filo pastry – only 12 sheets (175g) are used

Pre-heat your oven to 225°C, Gas Mark 7 and oil two oven trays. For the filling, mix the lamb, apple, cinnamon, pepper and salt in a non-stick frying pan, heated to very hot. Cook, stirring over high heat, for 5 minutes or until all the pinkness has gone and the lamb smells aromatic. Leave to cool, then stir in the mint. Mix the butter and oil and keep to one side. Place 12 pastry sheets with long sides parallel to your worktop. Cut with kitchen scissors into three even strips, making 36, and place in a neat pile. Using a pastry brush, brush the top 2 strips with the butter-oil, and set one on top of the other. Spoon a heaped teaspoon of filling onto the lower left corner of this double strip. Fold its top left corner diagonally to enclose the meat, making a right triangle. Fold again to the right to make another triangle and continue until all the pastry has been used up and one neat triangle has been formed. Brush well with butter-oil. Repeat to make 18 filo pies, then bake for 18-20 minutes or until crisply golden. Serve 3 or 4 per person, hot, warm or cool, with a well-dressed leafy salad.

RECIPE CLARE FERGUSON
STYLING KAREN AKHTAR
PHOTOGRAPHS SIMON BROWN
JUNE 2008