Ham. cheese and pineapple filos

Ingredients:
40g butter
40g flour
250ml milk
1 and 1/2 cups grated cheddar
1 packet of sliced ham, chopped
4 tbs crushed pineapple, well drained
1 packet of filo pastry
100g butter, melted        

To make eight to 10 pies:
Preheat your oven to 170˚C.

In a saucepan, melt the butter, add the flour and cook, stirring constantly until a golden dough has formed. Add the milk and some salt and bring to the boil. Simmer, stirring all the time, until nice and thick. Take the pan off the heat and beat in the cheese until smooth. Mix in the ham and pineapple and set aside in the fridge to cool.

On a bench, place your filo pastry and keep covered with a cloth so it does not dry out and crack.

Put one piece on the bench and brush it with melted butter, and then repeat with two more layers. You will now have three layers of filo, each one brushed with butter. Cut the filo layers in half longways. Place two to three spoons of chilled mix onto each piece of filo. Fold each side in on itself and, starting at one end, roll up to the other. You should be left with a fat, cigar-shaped pie. It is important to enclose the sides at the beginning so the mix does not ooze out when cooking.

Bake on a tray lined with baking paper for 12-14 minutes, or until lightly browned. Because of all the cheese inside, you don’t want to overcook them or they may burst.

Serve them just as they are, but allow to cool for about five minutes as they will be very hot inside.

A great afternoon snack for the kids.