Spanakopita
traditional greek Spinach, feta, filo sheet, delicious pie
In most cases this ends up in an overpriced selection of dishes that the restaurant wants to get rid of, but in this case, it was a small family tavern and I got one of the best Greek meals I've ever had. Among them was the spanakopita, which caught my attention right from the start.
It was years after that meal when I came across spanakopita again, in an article about Greek food in a magazine. I knew right away that I had to make this great spinach filo pie, and since then it's one of those dishes I always go back to — changing the version, desperately trying to reach that distinct taste I have in my mind from that small tavern.
Traditional Spanakopita guidelines
You can't go wrong with spinach, feta, and filo, right? Well, you can — I've had awful spanakopitas over the years, and I believe the key to a good one is keeping the proportion between the herbs and greens right, and keeping the filo (phyllo) layers nice and crunchy. Spinach is the heart of this dish and should be treated as such. I just blanch it for no more than 3-4 minutes and soak it in ice water — I want it to be crunchy and bright green. Don't forget that the spinach will be baked, so if it's not 100% soft, that's OK.
The method
Spanakopita is a feta and spinach filling wrapped in filo sheets. The filling is wet, so we need enough filo sheets to hold it together. I use a minimum of 3 sheets — less than that and the pie won't hold stable. Filo is a thin sheet dough with zero fat, so to bring it together we need to add some kind of fat, otherwise it'll go dry and break. I use olive oil, following the traditional Greek method, but if you want to enrich the pie you can use melted butter or regular oil. It really doesn't matter, as long as you brush the filo layers thoroughly — that's what ensures they come out nice and crispy and don't break.
Method
- 1
blanching the spinach
Set a large pot with water on high heat. Prepare a bowl with ice water. Wash the spinach and dry it out. When water comes to a boil insert the spinach, it may take 2-3 batches to get the amount of spinach blanched. Cook the spinach in the boiling water for 2 minutes and immediately place in the ice bath. Dry the spinach chop finely and set aside.
- 2
cook the spinach filling· 10 minutes
Set a large iron skillet over medium-high heat. Coat the skillet with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, add the red onion and leeks, stir for 3 minutes until fragrant and add the garlic for another 2 minutes. Add the spinach and thyme to the skillet, pour 2 more tablespoons of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Set aside for 5 minutes to cool.
- 3
combine the egg filling with the spinach mix· 3 mimutes
In a large bowl, stir the eggs and milk, add the Feta cheese, chopped parsley, mint and dill. Mix all ingredients. Add the spinach mixture to egg mixture and mix until fully incorporated.
- 4
assemble the Spanakopita· 10 minutes
Preheat the oven to 180°c/350°F. Brush the sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with olive oil and lay the first filo sheet on it. Brush the filo sheet we laid on the baking pan with olive oil until completely covered and lay the 2nd filo sheet on it, brush the 2nd layer of dough as well and lay another filo sheet on top of it. Pour the spinach-egg-feta filling on top of the filo dough. Lay another 3 layers of filo sheets on top of the filling, with the same method of brushing each layer with olive oil. Fold the sides and corners of the dough towards the inside of the pan and brush them and top of the filo sheet with olive oil.
- 5
baking the Spanakopita· 40-45 minutes
Insert the Spanakopita into the middle rack of the oven and bake for 45 minutes until golden brown. Take the pie out of the oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before slicing. Cut the Spanakopita and serve immediately.
Jaron Kimhi
Jaron Kimhi — self-taught home cook from Tel Aviv, writing and cooking every recipe on this site himself. 20+ years of tinkering in the kitchen, leaning toward slow cooking, classic technique, and honest ingredients.
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