I got in touch with London based chef Maria Elia as she was heading for Greece for a women chefs only festival.

Maria Elia maps her passions on freshly baked This Is Maria Elia site which just launched.

Need ideas for your next Meatless Monday, check her Vegetarian Recipes, for example The tomato, feta, almond and date baklava (details below *):

"Baklava is usually sweet, but I always like to think outside the box, and I find that once I do this, a whole new culinary world opens up before me. This recipe doesn’t break any rules, but it certainly makes a wonderful-tasting dish combining my love of eclectic Greek flavours. Serves 6-8

100ml olive oil
5 Spanish onions, halved and finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
pinch of granulated sugar
a bunch of dill, finely chopped (or 3 teaspoons dried)
10 vine plum tomatoes, skinned and roughly chopped (reserve half of the juices)
3 teaspoons tomato purée
1 packet filo pastry (9 sheets)
150g melted butter
60g blanched almonds, whizzed to a crumble
100g Medjool dates, stoned and finely sliced
250g feta cheese, crumbled
4 tablespoons clear honey

Heat the olive oil in a large-bottomed pan. Gently fry the onions over a low heat, add the garlic, cinnamon and sugar and increase the heat. Fry for about 12 minutes, until caramelised. Add the dill, tomatoes and half of their juices and the tomato purée and cook for a further 10 minutes, until reduced. Season to taste.

Unfold the pastry and cut in half; keep it covered with a damp cloth to prevent it from drying out. Brush a baking tray (approximately 30 x 20cm) with melted butter, line the tin with a sheet of filo, brush with butter and repeat until you have a 3-layer thickness.

Unfold the pastry and cut in half; keep it covered with a damp cloth to prevent it from drying out. Brush a baking tray (approximately 30 x 20cm) with melted butter, line the tin with a sheet of filo, brush with butter and repeat until you have a 3-layer thickness.

Unfold the pastry and cut in half; keep it covered with a damp cloth to prevent it from drying out. Brush a baking tray (approximately 30 x 20cm) with melted butter, line the tin with a sheet of filo, brush with butter and repeat until you have a 3-layer thickness.



Spread half the onion mixture over the pastry, top with half the almonds, the dates and half the feta. Sandwich 3 layers of filo together, brushing each with melted butter and place on top of the onion and feta mix. Top with the remaining onions, almonds and feta and again top with a 3-layer thickness of filo. Lightly score the top, cutting diamonds (see photo) or squares, brush with butter and splash with a little water. Place on a baking tray and cook for 30–35 minutes until golden.

Leave to cool a little before serving, then drizzle each portion with honey. Serve with a Fennel Salad and some tzatziki."

This baklava is one of the many creative dishes you will find in her cookbook The Modern Vegetarian (Kyle Books).

Read Emily Ho's Review (The Kitchn, January 2010)

(* Recipe use courtesy of Maria Elia, baklava photographed by Jonathan Gregson)