Madhouse recipe : Tuna Filo Parcels

Heading back to work, I knew that one of the trickiest things would be lunchtimes. The canteen is open but people have to keep their distance from each other and food options are limited. On top of that, teachers are having to help out with supervising and moving around the different groups of pupils from one place to another, so I needed a quick packed lunch. These Filo Parcels were great - quick to make and they taste lovely. They can also be eaten either hot or cold, which is a bonus.

Tuna Filo Parcels

ingredients :

a roll of filo pastry

a tin of tuna

1 large cooked potato

1/2 a tin of sweetcorn

handful of grated cheese

1 egg

1tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp garlic salt

a little oil (for brushing)

Drain the tuna. Crush the potato with a fork in a bowl, then stir in the tuna and the spices. I used paprika and garlic salt as I wanted to keep things tame for the kids, but you could use chilli, cumin, mint, ... whatever you fancy !

Add the egg and mix it in. I also used up the end of a tin of sweetcorn, which worked well.

Looking through the fridge for inspiration, I finished off the end of a bag of grated cheese. Parmesan would work too. Maybe some capers or gherkins? 

Cut the filo pastry into wide strips (about 10cm wide). Place a heaped tablespoon of filling on the end of the strip.

Fold the end of the filo pastry across the filling diagonally. You may want to flip up the edge of the pastry along the bottom to help seal in the filling. Then flip it across to the left, then along the diagonal edge.

Tuck the ends in if you can, to save the filling splurging out.

 You could fry these in a deep fat fryer for a few minutes until they go crispy and golden brown. I opted for the healthier choice though and put them in the oven for 12 minutes. (Keep a check on them and remove them before they start to burn.)

Eat with salad or rice, or maybe even couscous. Or just pop them in a packed lunch as a quick snack.

These are great for using up odds and ends from the fridge and spice rack, so I'm adding them to the #KitchenClearout linky.