Spanakopitas are a Greek specialty. Easy to prepare, they are perfect as appetizers, but can also be enjoyed as a snack or accompany a dish of grilled fish, seafood or simply an original salad like our grilled radish salad. For the recipe, click here.
There are many variations of this great Mediterranean classic. You can modify the stuffing ingredients as you wish.
Add finely chopped walnuts or pine nuts. Replace part of the feta cheese with ricotta, goat cheese or Parmesan, and the leek with onion. Replace the mint and basil with Italian parsley. Finally, you can replace the melted butter used to brush the dough with ¼ cup of olive oil.
Prepare them in advance and freeze them to always have them on hand!
Ingredients
- 30 ml (2 tbsp.) olive oil
- 250 ml (1 cup) chopped leek
- 180 ml (3/4 cup) chopped green onions
- 1 clove of garlic, chopped
- 5 cups radish leaves, washed and trimmed
- 12 cups fresh spinach, washed and trimmed
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) chopped fresh mint
- 60 ml (1/4 cup) chopped fresh basil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 beaten egg
- 375 ml (1 1/2 cups) crumbled light feta cheese
- 12 sheets of phyllo dough
- 8 tbsp. of melted butter
Preparation
- Place the grill at the centre of the oven. Preheat oven to 375 °F.
- Heat the oil in a non-stick pan. Cook the leek, onion, radish leaves and garlic for 3 to 4 minutes.
- Turn off the heat and add the spinach. Remove pan from heat once the spinach has wilted.
- Press the spinach mixture through a strainer to extract as much liquid as possible before placing it in a mixing bowl.
- Add the fresh herbs, season with salt and pepper to taste, then let cool.
- Add the beaten egg and feta cheese, mixing between each ingredient. Refrigerate stuffing until completely cooled.
- On a work surface, place 2 sheets of phyllo dough and brush them with melted butter. Cut the dough lengthwise to obtain four strips.
- Place 2 to 3 tbsp. of filling at the end of each strip.
- Fold the dough over itself to form a small triangle. Fold the triangle on itself repeatedly to form a small turnover.
- Place the turnovers on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
- Brush the turnovers with melted butter. (If you prepare them in advance, you can put them in the freezer at this stage, directly on the baking sheet. You can transfer them to an airtight container once frozen. They will keep for two months in the freezer.)
- Bake for about 20 minutes or until the turnovers are golden brown.
TIP: Phyllo dough dries quickly! Cover unused dough with a damp cloth to prevent the sheets from breaking when you handle them.
