🥧 Spinach and cheese burek (zeljanica)

Name: Spinach and cheese burek (zeljanica)
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: Balkans · Bosnia and Serbia
Ingredients: 500 g phyllo sheets; 700 g fresh spinach, chopped; 1 onion, finely chopped; 300 g fresh white cheese, crumbled; 60 ml vegetable oil, divided; Salt and black pepper

Origin: Balkans · Bosnia and Serbia

440kcal

per serving · 200 g

220kcal

per 100 g

16 gProtein8 g / 100 g

26 gFat13 g / 100 g

40 gCarbs20 g / 100 g

Burek sa spanaćem, called zeljanica in Bosnia, is a Balkan pie of phyllo layers filled with chopped spinach, onion and crumbled fresh white cheese. It bakes golden and flaky, with a soft, savoury green filling. It is eaten warm for breakfast or as a light meal.

Diets

✓

Vegetarianno meat or fish in a typical recipe

✓

No pork

Not veganbecause of: cheese

Contains glutenbecause of: phyllo pastry

Contains dairybecause of: cheese

Not keto20 g carbs per 100 g

Allergens

Contains (in a typical recipe):

⚠ Gluten ⚠ Milk

What it is made of

phyllo pastryspinachcheeseonion

Recipe

6 servings60 min

Ingredients

500 g phyllo sheets
700 g fresh spinach, chopped
1 onion, finely chopped
300 g fresh white cheese, crumbled
60 ml vegetable oil, divided
Salt and black pepper

Method

Wilt the spinach with the onion in 1 tbsp oil, squeeze out the liquid, cool, then mix with the cheese, salt and pepper.
Oil a 28 cm round baking tin. Layer sheets of phyllo, brushing each lightly with oil, then spread the filling and roll or fold into a spiral or layered pie.
Brush the top with a little oil and bake at 200 °C for 35–40 minutes until deep golden and crisp.
Rest for 10 minutes, then cut into wedges and serve warm.

How to make it lighter

Increase the spinach and reduce the cheese — the filling stays moist with fewer calories.
Brush the phyllo with oil instead of pouring — 1 tbsp oil ≈ 120 kcal.
Have one wedge with a tomato salad as a complete light meal.

History

Burek came to the Balkans with Ottoman cuisine and is related to the Turkish börek. In Bosnia and Herzegovina only the meat-filled version is strictly called burek, while the others are known as pita; elsewhere in the former Yugoslavia every version is simply burek. Today it is a standard breakfast from bakeries across the region.

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Similar dishes

Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →