Spanakopita is a classic Greek savoury pie filled with the goodness of spinach and cheese, encased in a crispy pastry.
It's a great breakfast option, especially with a tomato salad on the side, and you will find several versions of it.
Food blogger Nadiya Sarguroh has an enticing recipe.
Photograph: Kind courtesy HautePot
Spanakopita
Makes: 6-8 triangles
Ingredients
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 280 gm fresh spinach leaves
- 4 sheets of filo or phyllo pastry, thawed 45-60 minutes, if frozen (sheets are easily available in stores)
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Salt to taste
- Oil for greasing baking tray and filo/phyllo sheets
For the filling
- ½ cup cottage cheese (since cotttage cheese is rarely available in India, substitute with an equal mixture of ricotta and paneer or an equal mixture of hung curd and paneer)
- ½ cup feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 tbsp finely grated parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp dried oregano or less
- ¼ tsp black pepper, crushed
- ½ tsp red chilly powder
Method
- In a colander wash the spinach leaves well.
Squeeze excess water, pat dry and roughly chop. Keep aside. - Heat the olive oil in a large flat frying pan over low heat. Do not allow it to smoke.
Add the finely chopped onions and fry until softened. - Add the spinach leaves and cook until it looks wilted. Remove from heat.
- In a large bowl add all the filling ingredients along with the cooked spinach and onions.
Add just a pinch of salt and mix well.
Taste the mixture and adjust the salt as feta cheese can be quite salty. - Preheat the oven to 180°C and brush a baking tray with oil.
If using an air fryer, preheat to 180°C and lightly brush the basket with oil. - On a cutting board, place the 4 filo sheets on top of each other.
Don't forget to brush each sheet with oil and avoid pressing the sheets down. - Using a pizza cutter, cut the sheets, parallel to the short edge into 8 equal strips.
- Add about 1 tsp of filling on one end of the sheet and keep folding diagonally to make a triangle.
Repeat for all strips. - Place all the 8 triangles on the baking tray and bake for about 30 minutes, until golden.
If using an air fryer, cook for 15 minutes or until golden brown at 180°C. - Leave to cool. Serve with a Greek tomato salad or a chickpea salad.
Nadiya Sarguroh lives in Mumbai and publishes the food blog HautePot.
