Spanakopita
Spinach and Feta Pie
Greece has a pie for every vegetable and every hour, and this is the one that travelled. Spinach, leeks, dill and feta go between sheets of filo brushed with olive oil, and the whole thing is baked until it crackles. Bakeries sell it by the square from early morning.
The magazine recipe read fills a 23 x 33 cm dish with a mixture of spinach, three leeks, dill, 200 g of feta and two eggs, between oiled sheets of filo, and bakes it at about 220°C for 45 minutes.
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 180 ml olive oil
- 3 leeks, white and pale green parts, thinly sliced
- 255 g spinach, washed, dried and roughly chopped
- A small bunch of dill (about 20 g), chopped
- 200 g feta, crumbled
- 2 medium eggs, beaten
- Fine sea salt and black pepper
- 450 g filo pastry (about 2 packets), thawed if frozen
Method
- Cook the filling Heat 3 tbsp of the oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Cook the leeks for 8 to 10 minutes until soft. Add the spinach and stir for 2 to 3 minutes until wilted and the pan is dry. Tip into a bowl and leave to cool.
- Finish the filling Stir the dill, feta and eggs into the cooled vegetables. Season with pepper and a little salt, remembering that the feta is salty.
- Layer the base Heat the oven to 220°C (200°C fan). Brush the dish with oil. Keep the filo under a damp cloth. Lay half the sheets in the dish one at a time, brushing each with oil and letting the edges hang over the sides.
- Fill and cover Spread the filling over the pastry. Fold the overhanging edges in. Cover with the remaining sheets, brushing each with oil, and tuck the edges down the sides. Score the top layers into squares with a sharp knife.
- Bake Bake for about 45 minutes, until deep golden and crisp, covering loosely with foil if the top browns too fast. Cool for 20 minutes before cutting.
A wet filling makes a soggy base. Cook the spinach until the pan is dry.
Scoring before baking lets steam out and gives clean squares.