Gözleme with cheese and sausage

Gözleme is a traditional savoury Turkish pastry with various fillings, mostly including cheese. The name is given by the brown spots that form during cooking and resemble eyes (göz = eye). Authentic gözleme is made from handmade unleavened dough that is rolled out into a thin sheet, filled and folded either in half or as an envelope and grilled until golden and spotted.

I found out about this dish from Laura Adamache's blog. Her idea of adding dill captured me instantly; I love the flavour of fresh dill in hot foods. With so many Turkish shops in my area I wasn't going to make this pastry from scratch, so I bought some yufka sheets. This is a lazy man's dream. It's so quick and easy to prepare and the result absolutely delicious. I used a combination of vegan mozzarella, cheddar, spicy sausages and fresh dill and everyone loved them.

One pack of yufka contains 3 round sheets (about 70 cm/27.5"). I bought 2 packs and the first time I used 2 sheets and made 4 gözleme. The second time I used the remaining 4 sheets, doubled the ingredients and made 8 gözleme. If you prefer not to use vegan cheese (some of it contains soy), you can opt for sautéed spinach or kale with garlic and sprinkle some nutritional yeast on top for a cheesy flavour. Yufkas are thicker than filo pastry. If you can't find them, you can use 3 filo sheets and brush them very lightly with milk so they get cooked through.

What you need...

• 2 yufka sheets
• 1 pack (190 g) mozzarella, shredded on the large side of the grater
• 1 pack (190 g) cheddar (the orange type), also shredded
• 4 vegan hot dogs or a mix of mini sausages, chopped
• handful of dill, chopped
• 1/4 cup milk (I used oat milk)
• a little oil for frying

How to...

Place a sheet on your worktop/table and cut it in half. Gently fold one half and keep it aside.

Lightly brush the yufka with milk to soften it. Mix the 2 cheeses together and sprinkle 1/4 in the middle of the sheet. Add 1/4 of the sausages or hot dogs.

Sprinkle some dill on top.

Fold the sides over the middle part and brush with milk.

Fold this like a letter, bringing the top 1/3 over the middle.

Fold the bottom part over the top part, to create a pocket (I turned it around to give you a better look). Flip it over and keep aside. Handle with care, as the sheets can tear. Prepare the other 3 gözleme.

Add a few drops of oil to your pan and heat on medium. Fry the gözleme on one side until golden and crispy, then flip over using a spatula and let the other side cook.

Remove onto a plate, cut into 2 or 3 pieces and serve.

Gözleme are basically appetizers, but if you like them as much as I do, you will easily turn them into a main course:)

Enjoy!

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