The preparation of a traditional spinach pie !

Here in Greece we tent to eat a lot of pies. After the ‘Tiropita’ which is a pie with Greek cheese ‘feta’, ‘spanakopita’ is the next most famous pie. ‘Spanakopita’ is a pie with spinach (spanaki = spinach in Greek).

Tasty spanakopita.

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Spanakopita with feta cheese or ''spanakotiropita ''.

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You can find ‘Spanakopita’ served everywhere in Greece, and in many different versions. These variations depend on the spinach filling (many people add leeks), the kind and the yeast management and the way that is being cooked. The most famous variation is that with the Greek feta in it which is called ‘Spanakotiropita’.

It’s a very easy recipe, the preparation time is thirty minutes and it’s enough for eight to ten people.

For the phyllo dough you will need:

• 800 gramms of all-purpose flour

• Two table spoons of olive oil

• Onepinch of salt

• 400 ml water (almost two glasses so the dough won’t stick)

• Some sesame seeds

For the filling you will need:

• One a kilo of spinach

• Half a bunch of parsley

• Half a bunch of dill

• three leeks

• two table spoons of olive oil

• half a kilo of feta cheese, grated

• five eggs

• some salt

• a generous amount of pepper

• grated zest from one lemon

• mint

• olive oil and flour to roll out the dough

And you are ready to begin!

First we prepare the phyllo dough. Combine the flour, the salt and the olive oil in a bowl. Gradually add the water while you are stirring with a spoon. When the mixture becomes too stiff to be able to mix with a spoon, knead with your hands until you create a nice dough. Then cover the bowl with a towel, set it aside and let it to rest.

Preheat the oven to 180 oC (or 350 oF) Fan.

Now it’s time to prepare the filling. Finely chop the spinach, the parsley, the mint, the dill and the leeks. Season with a small amount of salt (be careful! Do not overdo it with the salt because the feta cheese we will add is salty) and some pepper. Add the ground feta and the lemon zest. Then whisk the eggs together and add them to the mixture. Add the olive oil and mix the filling to combine all of the ingredients.

Then, cut the dough in half. Roll out the first half into a circle. Transfer to a round baking pan, letting the edges of the dough hanging over the side of the pan.

Add the filling and spread it evenly over the dough. Fold the overhanging dough over, and brush with some olive oil.

Roll out the second half into a circle and place it over the filling, tucking the edges into the pan.

Then score into 8 to 10 pieces.

Finally, brush with some olive oil and sprinkle with some sesame seeds.

Bake for one hour, until it gets golden.

Enjoy!

Your spanakopita is ready to be served.

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Why is it finishing so fast? Maybe because it is delicious!

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