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Spanakopita

Spanakopita in Phyllo Pastry



Phyllo triangles, folded like one folds the flag, present an incredible
Course Appetizer
Cuisine Greek Canadian
Prep Time 2 hours
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 2 hours 10 minutes
Servings 192 triangles
Author Valerie Lugonja

Ingredients

  • 300 grams chopped frozen spinach (or 1 box) , thawed
  • 500 grams of high quality feta , crumbled
  • 250 grams of cream cheese
  • 2 tablespoons onion , finely minced
  • 2 eggs , whisked
  • 1 bunch of fresh baby dill , finely chopped
  • 2-3 fresh garlic cloves , minced (5 grams-10 grams)
  • Half a fresh whole nutmeg , grated
  • Freshly ground black pepper (1/4 teaspoon)
  • 2 boxes of phyllo (filo) pastry, thawed
  • 1 cup of melted butter (likely more)

Instructions

Prepare Spinach:

  1. To get all of moisture out of frozen spinach, place it in tea towel and squeeze it until liquid is completely expelled

Instructions for Filling:

  1. In a medium sized mixing bowl, place all ingredients, except butter and phyllo pastry
  2. Mix or knead together to combine completely

Instructions for Making the Spanakopita:

  1. Line a freezer container with plastic wrap
  2. Moisten two tea towels, and wring out until just damp
  3. Cut open plastic bag phyllo is housed in; slide out phyllo, and unroll
  4. Take out one leaf; re-roll phyllo quickly inside parchment paper protector
  5. Place phyllo on top of one damp tea towel, then lay second over phyllo rectangle of phyllo in front of you, vertically.
  6. Using a pastry brush, brush lower half of rectangle with butter; fold top half onto buttered portion
  7. Make 6 even vertical slices into strips; place a small amount of filling in each bottom right triangular corner of each strip of phyllo
  8. Fold that over, and continue folding, triangularly, as you fold a flag, until you have completed one spanakopita triangle
  9. Brush each with butter, and place in freezer container, covering gently with plastic wrap
  10. Continue with remaining dough and filling; consistently be sure to keep phyllo covered with moist towels as it dries very quickly
  11. Line each layer of freezer container with plastic wrap; seal tightly, label and date
  12. Freeze up to 3 months.

Baking Spanakopita

  1. Pre-heat oven to 400°F; bake 8-10 minutes until golden
  2. Serve immediately with white gloves on a silver tray, of course!

Recipe Notes

Phyllo dries out very quickly, so you must be quick when working with it. It can be very brittle, even when “new”. It is important with this recipe that the dough is in excellent condition. As these are small morsels, and very labour intensive, it makes sense to use only the best leaves of pastry. Take it back and get better phyllo if it is shredded or dry.