I created magic with phyllo dough in my kitchen this weekend! All I can say is YUM!!!!Starting out new to the world of vegan cooking, I was intimidated by recipes using phyllo dough. Whenever I would stumble upon one in one of my cookbooks, I would salivate over the mental (or physical) picture of the enticing treat, and then quickly flip the page, assuming all the while that phyllo was hard to find and difficult to work with. Then last year, feeling adventurous, I attempted the Baklava recipe in Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's "The Joy of Vegan Baking" (pg. 162). It turned out to be both easy and delicious! Afterward, ideas for more possible recipes involving phyllo dough flooded my mind. With the leftover phyllo, I created my vision of the ultimate vegan comfort food: Vegan Ham, Cheddar, and Broccoli Phyllo Casserole. It was an amazing, delicious success! Unfortunately, I've never been able to officially share this recipe because I didn't record the process or measurements.
But this weekend, I finally did it! Saturday was me and Robin's weekly Vegan Food Party day, and we decided to make the phyllo casserole; this time recording the process, ingredients, and measurements as we went. It turned out to be so delicious that we ate the ENTIRE recipe before I remembered to take a picture! Determined to share this recipe once and for all, picture included, I made the casserole again the following night. I had a ton of leftover phyllo, a whole head of broccoli, and a decent amount of cheese. All I had to buy more of was "ham." I didn't want to make as big of a casserole as the one Robin and I made (since I didn't have quite as much in the way of ingredients as I did the first time around) so I made it into a half-recipe, which is what you see in the pictures. So, finally, success. I recreated the recipe, got a picture, and figured out how to make a quicker, smaller version in the process.
But that's not nearly the end of my Phyllo adventure. Realizing how much phyllo I would still have even after making the second casserole, my mind started getting creative. From my hungry imagination came the idea for: Vegan Spinach, Artichoke, and Cream Cheese Phyllo "Muffins." These I envisioned as a fun appetizer or as a small side to a salad. And, of course, they turned out so amazing that I ate half the recipe all to myself...that's on top of the half of the casserole that I ate!
Neither of these recipes are exactly what I would ever call health food (they are DEFINITELY in the vegan COMFORT FOOD category!) but they do make for a delicious indulgence. And once you see how easy phyllo is to work with, you will love it! And if you are adventurous, you can start making phyllo casseroles and "muffins" with any fillings you desire!
Here are my two vegan phyllo recipes:
Vegan Ham, Cheese, and Broccoli Phyllo Casserole
Servings: 2-4 (or more, if served in small squares for appetizers)
Ingredients:
-1 pkg Phyllo dough, thawed if frozen (you won't use entire package for one recipe)
-1 pkg vegan ham (I use Yves brand), chopped
-3 cups vegan cheese, shredded (I used Vegan Gourmet brand, combination of cheddar and mozzarella)
-1 head broccoli, chopped into bite sized florets
-3-4 Tbsp vegan margarine, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil/spray/butter a 5in x 9in baking dish
In a large mixing bowl, combine ham, cheese, and broccoli until well-mixed.
Cut phyllo dough into appx. 5in x 9in rectangles. Place 7 sheets of dough, one at a time, at the bottom of baking dish and, using a pastry brush, coat each sheet with a thin layer of melted margarine.
Pour half of the ham, cheese, and broccoli mixture over the phyllo. Next, layer four sheets of phyllo dough over the cheese mixture, coating each sheet with margarine. Top that layer of phyllo with the remaining cheese mixture. Top casserole with 7 more sheets of phyllo, again coating each sheet with margarine.
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly and melted (if using a glass dish that you can actually see through) and the top is golden brown.
Smaller Casserole Variation: (makes 1 HUGE serving, 2 large servings, or 4 small servings)
Follow all of the same instructions as above except use 1 1/2 cups shredded vegan cheese, 1/2 pkg vegan ham, and 1/2 - 1 full head broccoli (I used 1 full head of broccoli); Use 4 sheets of phyllo for each of the three layers, and "butter" every 2 to 4 sheets, to lower fat content, if desired. Bake for 30 minutes.
Vegan Spinach, Artichoke, and Cream Cheese Phyllo "Muffins"
Servings: 6-8 "muffins"
Ingredients:
-1 pkg Phyllo dough, thawed if frozen (you won't use a entire package for one recipe)
-1 8 oz tub vegan cream cheese
-3 cups fresh spinach, divided
-1 13 oz can quartered artichoke hearts, drained
-1 large clove garlic
-1 tsp lemon juice
-1/4 tsp sea salt
-1/4 tsp onion powder
-2-3 tbsp vegan margarine, melted
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil 6-8 muffin tins
In food processor, pulse 2 cups of spinach, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and onion powder until spinach is chopped and ingredients are combined. Then add cream cheese, and blend until well-mixed. Transfer mixture to a medium mixing bowl. Add remaining 1 cup of spinach and artichoke hearts (chop any larger segments into bite sized pieces) to cream cheese mixture and mix well to combine.
Cut phyllo into appx. 5in. x 5in. squares (enough to fill a muffin tin completely with about an inch of extra phyllo sticking out).
Place two sheets of phyllo in the muffin tin and, using a pastry brush, coat with a thin layer of melted margarine. Repeat with a 2nd layer of two phyllo sheets and margarine. (It should kinda look like a tulip)
Next, fill with cream cheese mixture.
Fold the extra phyllo dough toward the middle (covering the filling) and coat top with a light layer of margarine.
Repeat with the remaining dough and filling until all the filling is gone (should fill 6-8 muffin tins)
Bake for 30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown
The filling possibilities for both the phyllo casserole and the "muffins" are endless! Use your imagination!
Try:
-Vegan mozzarella, broccoli, mushrooms, onion, and garlic filling
-Tofu, spinach, onion, and garlic filling
-Basil, tofu, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, garlic, and kalamata olives filling
-Sweet fillings like fruit for a dessert; apples, walnuts, cinnamon, and agave nectar; blueberries, agave nectar, and vegan cream cheese
-Spelt or whole wheat phyllo dough
-Lowering fat by "buttering" every 2-4 sheets instead of each sheet in the casserole
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