Spinach pie (Spanikopita in Greek) is a classic of Greek cuisine. It is made with phillo pastry, a paper-thin dough and fresh succulent spinach…
Ingredients (for 2)
- 4 cups fresh spinach
- 8 sheets phyllo pastry
- 1/2 cup feta cheese
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tbsp dill
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 scallion
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter
- salt & pepper
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350 °F (180 °C)
- Remove large, tough stems from spinach and wash carefully the leaves in abundant running water
- Dry the spinach leaves on paper towels and chop coarsely
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet, add scallion cut in slices and cook until translucent (about 3-4 minutes)
- Add the spinach and stir-fry at medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft and tender (add a sip of water if necessary); set aside and let it cool a few minutes
- Stir dill and beaten egg into the pan
- Season with salt, black pepper and nutmeg to your taste
- Butter a baking pan and start to place one sheet of phyllo pastry after the other, continuing brushing each sheet of phyllo with butter until you use half of the sheets
- Spread spinach filling evenly over phyllo and cover with the remaining phyllo pastry sheets brushed with butter
- Fold excess phyllo over and bake for 40 minutes, or until crust is golden
- Let it rest a few minutes before serving, and cut it in squares
Tips from the Chef
- Be sure that all moisture of the spinach has evaporated before laying it on the phyllo pastry or it will get too wet
- You can use frozen spinach, but squeeze out excess water through a colander before baking
Cambooza 