Feta and Spring Onion Bouikos
By Rachel Davies
When it comes to nibbles, sometimes opening a bag of posh crisps is enough.
That, and a lovely glass of red wine before dinner, and I’m happy. Mmmm…
And when I say enough, I mean that some days it takes all my brain power just to remember to buy the crisps and put them in a bowl, during which time the oven timer goes off, a pot needs to be stirred, the doorbell rings and I have a baby in one arm.
The thought of relaxing with a glass of something seems like the ultimate decadence right now. And the crisps will do just fine.
However, some things are worth a little effort.
After trying these bouikos at the amazing Honey & Co restaurant in Warren Street, they are firmly in this category.
Not only are these nibbles incredibly simple to make, they taste far better than anything you can buy – a ‘freshly baked, melt in your mouth pastry’ treat.
I’d also recommend eating at Honey & Co if you haven’t already. It’s the creation of Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer – an Israeli couple and ex-Ottolenghi chefs.
The food is wonderful, and you can usually get a table without a reservation if you can go at obscure times of the day. It’s worth it just for a coffee and a slice of freshly baked, beautiful cake.
My daughter Savannah enjoyed the bouikos too, and I like to think of her as a mini connoisseur.
At the tender age of 7 months, she happily smeared Honey & Co’s mezze platter all over herself, covering her face and hair with hummus, bits of chewed pitta bread, and these lovely bouikos. I’d share a photo if I could, but my hands were covered in hummus and there was chewed up bread all over my lap. Nice.
I was delighted to find the recipe for these bouikos in the Honey & Co cookbook, and it’s one I’ll be making many more times.
Enjoy them, and be sure to double or even triple the recipe if you’ve got a few mouths to feed.
These are seriously moreish nibbles.
Honey & Co’s Feta and Spring Onion Bouikos
Makes 24 bitesize pieces
Ingredients
50g cold butter
40g mature Cheddar cheese, grated
40g feta, crumbled
100g plain flour
a pinch of salt
50ml sour cream
½ teaspoon nigella seeds
2 spring onions, chopped
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200˚C and line a baking tray with parchment.
- Cut the cold butter into dice-sized small cubes, and prepare the cheeses.
- In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment, or by hand, combine all the ingredients until just combined. Be careful not to overwork the mixture.
- Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and pat down to a rough rectangle 2-3cm thick. Cut the dough into triangles using a lightly floured knife. Do this by cutting the dough twice lengthways. Then slice across three times, and cut each rectangle diagonally to make triangles.
- Place on the baking tray and bake for 10 minutes. Turn the tray around, reduce the oven to 180˚C and bake for a further 6-8 minutes, or until golden.
- Serve hot or cooled. They are best eaten the same day.
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