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Updated February 4, 2022
Don’t let layers of flaky phyllo intimidate you. Here’s an easy recipe for spanakopita success.
Spanakopita is an essential Greek recipe. The pie is a savory mix of spinach, feta, and herbs ensconced in flaky layers of phyllo. Therefore, you will rarely encounter a Greek holiday or celebration without this masterpiece. In Greece, its prevalent supply leads it to be the logical choice for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Spanakopita’s versatility and portability makes it the perfect street food as well. I love making it for my Los Angeles personal chef clients. If you’re intrigued, read all about the history of Spanakopita.
Ingredients for an ideal Spanakopita
For me, the perfect spanakopita involves wilted spinach, woven with a variety of cheese. My goal is to have a filling that is tangy (from the feta), savory (from the Kefalotiri), and complex (from the herbs and scallions). In Greece, cooks use a nice salty hard salty sheep’s/goat’s-milk cheese called Kefalotiri. It’s a little harder to source that in the U.S. so you can sub in parmesan, romano or pecorino or a mix of those. Additionally, Feta cheese is a main ingredient. I love traditional Greek feta made from sheep’s and/or goat’s milk. If you can’t find that, try to source one that is tangy as that affects the spanakopita’s taste. Fresh herbs make the entire mix pop, so splurge on those. Most people traditionally use dill, mint, and parsley or any mix of those to your taste.
Making spanakopita in my kitchen.
Fresh vs Frozen Spinach
Let’s face it, nobody wants to eat a soggy spanakopita. But this doesn’t have to be your fate if you follow a few simple tips. Firstly, making sure you squeeze all the excess moisture out of your spinach. This is the case with fresh and frozen spinach. If you are using fresh spinach, wilt it in a large pan and then drain it in a colander. If you have a salad spinner, that’s even better. It is the perfect tool for getting all the extra moisture out of the spinach. For those using frozen spinach, make sure it’s thoroughly defrosted. Then squeeze out all moisture using a colander. You can also put it in a kitchen towel or a cheese cloth to help with squeezing.
Releasing Steam
Finally, scoring your spanakopita after you have assembled it serves two purposes. It vents the spanakopita and gets rid of the steam that can build up in the pie. The steam is excess moisture, which can make it soggy. In addition, scoring helps with cutting. You can cut phyllo before it cooks and becomes super flaky. Also, baking it in a shallower baking dish will help the steam escape and give you a crispier result.
Freeze for later
Sometimes if I’m in the groove (like in the time-lapse video below), I like to make a few spanakopitas at a time. Then I freeze them to easily bake off at a later time. All you have to do is make the pie up until you finish assembling it. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it. Once you are ready to bake it, take it out of the freezer, and pop it into the oven and bake directly from frozen. You don’t need to defrost it or anything. You’ll just need to bake it at a slightly lower temperature (350ºF) for a little longer.
Make this winning Spanakopita recipe
This recipe originally appeared on the Huffington Post in an article covering the 2010 KCRW Good Food Pie Contest. Moreover, I took home a 3rd place ribbon for it that year. I think I could have placed higher but there was some dispute if a spanakopita was a real pie. Obviously, it is a pie. It was a pie before pie was pie. But I digress.
Let me teach you how to make Spanakopita
I love teaching how to make this recipe in my cooking classes. Take the basic ingredients and riff off it to your own taste. This is the perfect ratio of scallions and spinach to cheese and herbs for me, but you may have another mixture in mind. Above all, savor your finished product. There’s nothing quite like a hot, buttery, spinachy, cheesy spanakopita that is just out of the oven.
Check out the recipe!
Spanakopita Recipe (Greek Spinach Pie)
Cuisine Greek, Mediterranean
Category Appetizer Entree Greek Easter Recipes Greek Food Greek Recipes Recipes Side Dish Vegetarian
Serving Size
1 piece
Prep Time
1 hour
Cook Time
45 minutes
Total Time
1 hour, 45 minutes
Spanakopita is one of Greece's most beloved dishes. It's a savory mixture of spinach, cheese, and herbs all baked into a flaky phyllo crust. Spanakopita is surprisingly easy to make. Follow these instructions for my streamlined but doubly delicious method.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs fresh or frozen spinach
- 3 bunches scallions (about 6 oz), chopped
- 3/4-lb (12 oz.) Feta cheese, (or up to 1 pound if you love Feta)
- 1-2 cups shredded Kefalotiri, or another shredded hard salty cheese like Pecorino Romano
- 1 cup fresh herbs (dill, mint and flat leaf parsley), chopped
- 2 eggs
- 1 1-lb box Phyllo dough
- 1 to 1-1/2 sticks butter or 1 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, for brushing phyllo
- 2 teaspoons black pepper
Instructions
Make the Filling:
- For Fresh spinach: In a large pan, wilt the spinach — you will likely have to work in batches — for about 4 minutes. Pour into a colander or, better yet, a salad spinner to drain any excess water. Roughly chop.
- If using frozen spinach, defrost spinach and squeeze out all excess moisture in a colander. Using a kitchen cloth or a cheese cloth helps.
- Chop the scallions and herbs.
- Transfer spinach, scallions, herbs to a large bowl.
- Add the both the cheeses, black pepper, and eggs.
- Mix well (I like to use my hands). Set aside the filling.
Phyllo Crust/Assembling the pie:
- Preheat oven to 375ºF convection (if you have it).
- Melt 1 stick of butter in a pan or in the microwave. If using olive oil, pour out at least 1 cup in a bowl (you may need up to another 1/2 cup).
- Make sure the box of phyllo is at room temperature. When you're ready to use it (not before or it will dry out), unwrap it so it is in one rectangular pile.
- I like to trim my phyllo before assembling the spanakopita, so one rectangle easily fits into my baking pan with no overhang. **See note on phyllo.
- Dip your pastry brush in the melted butter or extra virgin and brush a 9" x 13" baking pan with butter or olive oil.
- Pick up one leaf of phyllo and lay it in the pan. Lightly brush phyllo with oil/butter. Repeat layering the phyllo buttering each individual leaf. Layer about half of the leaves(** see note) in your package on the bottom.
- Dampen a kitchen towel and lay it on top of the unused phyllo. This keeps them from drying out.
- Pour the filling on top of the phyllo leaves in the pan. Evenly distribute it across the pan.
- Start making your top crust by adding a leaf of phyllo, brushing it with butter or olive oil it and adding another on top. Repeat the process for the rest of the leaves.
- Make sure to butter/oil your top piece of phyllo.
- Score the pie with your knife. You should be able to divide the pie evenly into 12 square pieces.
- Bake pie until top is brown, and phyllo layers are visible (like in the photo) about 45 minutes, to an hour. Start checking for color after 30 minutes.
Notes
- Phyllo varies by manufacturer. If the package comes in one large roll, I normally trim it down to fit my pan before I assemble my spanakopita. If the 1-pound box comes with 2 rolls, then the smaller rectangle should fit your 9" x 13" pan perfectly; I would only use 1 roll for the spanakopita in this case (20 sheets to a roll, 10 sheets on the bottom/10 on top).
- Dampen a kitchen towel or tea towel and cover your phyllo in between adding/brushing the sheets and especially when you’re pouring in the filling. The phyllo tends to dry out and becomes harder to use if you don’t cover it and keep it moist.
- I've used up to 1-lb of feta cheese in my spanakopita. If you're a feta lover feel free to increase the amount in this recipe.
- The trick for good spanakopita is to make sure the filling is not too soggy. Make sure you thoroughly drain your spinach. Scoring your spanakopita after you've assembled it (prior to baking it) vents the pie, which also helps it from getting soggy. Also, using as shallow of a pan as possible keeps steam and sogginess to a minimum.
- You can use olive oil instead of butter (or a mix) to brush on the phyllo.
- Make a few spanakopitas at a time and freeze them to easily bake off at a later time. All you have to do is make the pie up until you finish assembling it. Then wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze it. Once you are ready to bake it, take it out of the freezer, pop it into the oven, and bake directly from frozen. You don't need to defrost it or anything, you just have to cook it for a bit longer at 350ºF.
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©2024 © Christina Xenos
Nutrition Facts
Spanakopita Recipe (Greek Spinach Pie)
Serves: 12
| Amount Per Serving: 1 piece | ||
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 371.3 kcal | |
| % Daily Value* | ||
| Total Fat 23.35 g | 35.4% | |
| Saturated Fat 13.95 g | 65% | |
| Trans Fat 0.39 g | ||
| Cholesterol 94.36 mg | 31.3% | |
| Sodium 755.34 mg | 31.5% | |
| Total Carbohydrate 26.11 g | 8.7% | |
| Dietary Fiber 3.04 g | 12% | |
| Sugars 2.07 g | ||
| Protein 15.58 g | ||
| Vitamin A 526.08 µg | Vitamin C 30.56 mg | |
| Calcium 420.41 mg | Iron 4.27 mg | |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Sweet Greek Personal Chef and Culinary Services Los Angeles, CA
