Spanakopita: A Greek Spinach Pie Delight
Spanakopita, directly translated as "spinach pie," is a beloved Greek dish known for its flaky filo layers and savoury spinach filling. It captures the essence of Greek cuisine, bringing a piece of Greece to your kitchen.
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 600 g baby spinach
- 2 tbsp dill, finely chopped 15g
- 1 bunch flat leaf parsley, finely chopped 25g
- 4 green onions / scallions, finely chopped
- 10.5 oz feta 300g
- 2 garlic cloves minced or 10 garlic confit cloves
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 4 eggs
- 16 sheets filo pastry
- 10 tablespoon butter, melted 150g
- 1 tablespoon white and black sesame seeds
- black pepper
- kosher sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 220C / 430F. Pre line a large baking tray with baking paper.
- Sweat the spinach by placing it into a large bowl or colander and sprinkling with 2 teaspoon of kosher sea salt. Massage the salt into the spinach and leave to sit for 15 minutes to allow as much moisture to release from the spinach as possible.
- Place the spinach into a cheesecloth or thin tea towel and ring out the water. You will need to squeeze the spinach extremely hard to remove as much water as possible. Roughly chop the spinach.
- Place the spinach into a bowl along with the dill, parsley, scallions, feta, garlic, olive oil, eggs and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Mix well with your hands to combine.
- Layer 8 sheets of filo pastry onto the pre lined baking tray, brushing each sheet with the melted butter before laying the next one on top. Once you get to the 8th sheet of pastry, brush with butter then spread the filling onto it. Leave a 2.5cm / 1 inch border.
- Cover the spinach filling with a sheet of filo pastry, brush with butter then repeat with the remaining filo pastry. Press the edges down to create a seal and fold or crush the filo pastry up around the edges to create a rough edge. Brush the top with the remaining butter then sprinkle over the sesame seeds.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until golden and crispy. Serve immediately.
