Launched in the midst of the pandemic in Sydenham, south east London, Mystic Burek takes its name from a Macedonian filo pie that typically contains ground meat and cheese. It is the creation of Spasia Pandora Dinkovski, whose longing for her grandma’s cooking during lockdown saw her create a supper club, a delivery service and - now - a cafe.
Her debut book sets out her journey while presenting 80 creative recipes that are inspired by the little known - on these shores, at least - flavours of the Balkan diaspora. Brought up in Crawley, West Sussex, Dinkovski was encouraged to embrace her Macedonian heritage by her parents, spending her summers in North Macedonia, a landlocked country that borders Greece, Albania, Bulgaria, Kosovo and Serbia.
“Too Balkan to be British and too British to be Balkan,” she found food to be the ultimate way of connecting with both her homes. With a lengthy cooking CV that includes a long stint at Bodega Rita’s, Dinkovski presents a modern but ultimately authentic take on Balkan cuisine. The book starts with a number of interesting bulk basics most will not have heard of including ljutenica (spicy red pepper relish); makalo (garlic dip); ajvar (a ‘caviar’ of aubergine and red peppers); and kajmak (a salted clotted cream that is prized across the Balkans).
This is followed by a section on baking, which includes the burek from which her cafe takes its name; the enriched tear-and-share bread pogacha; and gibanica, an egg and cheese pie that - like burek - has a crispy filo exterior. Later on in the book are more contemporary takes on Balkan flavours, including fried chicken with kačamak (a polenta-like preparation) with green tomato hot sauce; a sausage bake made with the previously mentioned ajvar, greens and mozzarella; and a version of moussaka that subs out béchamel for eggs and yoghurt.
Doma: Traditional flavours and modern recipes from the Balkan diaspora
Spasia Pandora Dinkovski
Number of pages: 240
Standout recipe: Kjufte (meatballs) with hot chips, spicy tomato sos and cold feta
