Go for gozleme: Miguel Maestre’s Australian-fusion springtime recipes | Food (2024)

Gozleme are delicious stuffed Turkish flatbreads and a popular street food around the world. If I ever see a gozleme stall I’ll order one, even if I’m not really hungry! My version uses a very easy and forgiving dough, with paprika and lots of olive oil. It will always work, even if it is slightly over- or undercooked.

You can make the gozleme any size you like and really play around with the fillings. I like to grate the veggies finely so they almost disappear into the cheese (a great way to hide them from your kids). Always finish with just a squeeze of lemon. No sauce required!

Serves 4

For the dough
1 sachet (7g) instant dried yeast
1 tsp caster sugar
1 tsp salt flakes
450g plain flour
1 tbsp smoked paprika
80ml extra-virgin olive oil

To make the dough, combine the yeast, sugar, salt and 90ml of lukewarm
water in a small bowl and set aside for 10 minutes until it begins to bubble and activate. Mix together the flour and paprika in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Add the yeast mixture, oil and 200ml of lukewarm water. Working from the centre, slowly mix to incorporate the flour, stirring until a rough dough starts to form. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and set aside, covered, for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and lightly knead, then divide into four even pieces. Roll each piece into a rectangle about 30cm x 20cm. Sprinkle the grated vegetables evenly over two of the rectangles, leaving a little space around the edges, then crumble over the feta and finish with the spinach leaves. Top with the two remaining rectangles of dough and pinch the edges together to seal, keeping the join as thin as possible.

Lightly brush each gozleme with oil and cook on the hot plate or frying pan for 3−4 minutes on each side or until golden. Remove from the heat, cut into quarters and serve with lemon wedges.

Sticky soy barbecued broccoli with coriander pesto

Gone are the days of basic boiled veggies; look at broccoli in a whole new light with this filling, flavoursome dish.

2 heads broccoli, quartered
100ml kecap manis (Indonesian sweet sauce)
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp white sesame seeds
2 tbsp grated palm sugar
1 tsp salt flakes
1 lemon, finely grated zest and juice
Lime cheeks, to serve
Sliced radish and/or red chilli, to serve

To make the coriander pesto, place all the ingredients in a food processor and whiz to your preferred consistency. Maestre says he likes his “to still have a little texture”. Taste and season if needed, then set aside.

Preheat the barbecue grill or a chargrill pan over medium heat.

Blanch the broccoli in a saucepan of boiling water for 30 seconds, then drain and tip straight into a large baking dish.

Whisk together the kecap manis, sesame oil, sesame seeds, palm sugar, salt, lemon zest and lemon juice, then pour over the warm broccoli to coat well. Shake off and reserve the excess marinade, then grill for 2 minutes each side, basting with the reserved marinade. Grill the lime cheeks at the same time on a clean part of the grill.

Garnish with radish and/or chilli if you like, and serve with the grilled lime cheeks on the side.

Orange flans

Growing up, this was the dessert my mum would make all the time. It’s very authentic. A bit like a Spanish version of creme brulee, it’s a set custard with an insane orange flavour. I recommend making these really small, using wide, shallow ceramic dishes rather than dariole moulds or muffin trays. A thinner surface allows for more caramelisation and they’ll steam and set very fast.

You can omit the Cointreau in the caramel if you like, but most of the alcohol will burn off anyway so they’ll still be fine to share with the family.

625ml milk
2 vanilla beans, split and seeds scraped
finely grated zest of 2 oranges
3 eggs
2 egg yolks
160g pure icing sugar, sifted

For the caramel
220g caster sugar
1 tbsp Cointreau
2 tsp orange juice

To make the caramel, combine the sugar and 250ml of water in a medium heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and stir, without boiling, until the sugar has dissolved. Use a wet pastry brush to brush any stray grains of sugar on the side back into the mixture. Bring to the boil and cook, without stirring, until the caramel begins to turn a light golden brown. Add the Cointreau and juice and stir until combined.

Pour 5mm of caramel into each ovenproof dish and leave to set at room temperature. Don’t put it in the fridge or the caramel will separate.

Lightly whisk the eggs, egg yolks and icing sugar in a medium bowl. Gradually add the infused milk and whisk to combine.

Run a knife around the edges to loosen the custards, then invert onto plates, allowing the caramel sauce to coat the flans.

This is an extract from Feast by Miguel Maestre, published by Plum, RRP $39.99, Photography by Jeremy Simons