Spanakopita

How to Cook Spanakopita

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1. Wilt the fresh spinach in batches in a dry pan, then tip into a colander. Once cool enough to handle, squeeze it hard in your hands, then again inside a clean tea towel. You should be left with a dense ball.

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2. Chop the squeezed spinach roughly and put it in a bowl.

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3. Sauté the spring onions in a tablespoon of the olive oil for 3 minutes, cool slightly, and add to the spinach.

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4. Mix in the feta, ricotta, dill, parsley, eggs, nutmeg, pepper, salt and lemon zest.

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5. Combine the melted butter and remaining olive oil in a bowl.

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6. Brush a 30 x 22 cm tin with the fat and lay in a sheet of filo, letting the edges overhang. Brush and repeat with six sheets, alternating the direction each time.

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7. Spread the filling evenly and fold the overhanging edges inward over it.

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8. Layer the remaining six sheets on top, brushing each, and tuck the edges down inside the tin.

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9. Score the top layers into portions with a sharp knife — cutting only through the pastry, not the filling — then brush with the last of the fat and scatter with sesame seeds.

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10. Bake at 180°C / 355°F for 45 to 50 minutes until deep golden and crisp. Cool 20 minutes before cutting along the scored lines.

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Related guides: Prep, cook and total time · Pan and tin size.

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Keep an Eye on These

1. Score before baking. Trying to cut a baked spanakopita shatters the top into fragments.
2. Keep unused filo under a barely damp tea towel; it dries and cracks within a couple of minutes.
3. Feta varies in saltiness — taste the filling before adding any extra salt.

Ingredient Swaps

• Out of spring onions? A small regular onion, finely sliced, or a few chives stirred in at the end both cover the job.

A Little Background

Spinach is over 90% water, and any moisture left in the filling turns to steam and softens the filo from below. Squeezing it dry twice, and using a mix of butter and olive oil between layers, is what produces a base as crisp as the top.

On the Table Alongside

A crisp Assyrtiko or a glass of retsina · Serve with Greek salad as a light lunch · Follow with fresh figs

Leftovers

Keeps 3 days refrigerated; re-crisp at 180°C / 355°F for 12 minutes. Freezes unbaked for 2 months — bake from frozen, adding 15 minutes.

Common Questions

The Numbers per Serving

No nutrition figures are given for this recipe: they cannot be worked out reliably from its ingredient list (some ingredient lines cannot be read). Why some recipes have none.

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