Recipe | Layered spanakopita

Spanakopita is my favourite Greek dish. Every Easter or Christmas, I would sneak pieces before we sat down, only to be full by the time it came to actually having lunch.

My yiayia would make the filo fresh on the dining table, meticulously pulling it out bit by bit. As lovely as that is, it’s time-consuming, so here is the next best thing. Instead of a coil, this is a lazier, more village style, but it still has the filo layers to give that classic bite and feel. Use this filling in pastry triangles or as a pasta shell filling too.

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Time: 2 hours 20 minute

Serves 8

Ingredients

2 leeks

1 bunch spring onions (scallions) 

3 tablespoons dried oregano

½ nutmeg 

800 g (1 lb 12 oz) baby spinach

1 bunch fresh dill 

400 g (14 oz) feta cheese

3 eggs

¼ cup (30 g) dry (packaged) breadcrumbs

250 g (9 oz) filo pastry sheets, at room temperature (see Notes)

¼ cup (40 g) sesame seeds

Olive oil 

Salt and cracked black pepper, to taste

Notes

• I recommend a chilled filo, like Antoniou Fillo Pastry, rather than frozen. If only frozen filo is available, remember to thaw completely before you begin the cook.
• Pre-cutting the top of the spanakopita makes it easier to cut individual serves after it’s cooked without shattering the filo

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Method

Place a large heavy-based saucepan over medium heat, then add 1 tablespoon oil. While the pan gets hot, thinly slice the leeks and spring onions. Add to the pan with 2 pinches of salt and sweat down for 5 minutes. Add another tablespoon oil in the middle of the pan, then add the oregano. Finely grate in the nutmeg and sizzle, without stirring, then stir it through for a minute. 

In batches, add the spinach and for the last batch, take the pan off the heat and stir through until just wilted. (You don’t want the spinach to overcook.)

Finely chop the dill and add to the pan. Crumble in the feta. Add the eggs. Stir through. Add a big pinch of salt and a few cracks pepper. If the filling is a bit wet, just give it a good mix. (The filo will absorb most of the liquid.)

Preheat oven to 190°C (375°F) fan forced.

Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the base of a deep baking tray (to ensure there’s no soggy bottom). Lay four filo sheets over the breadcrumbs to cover, allowing one-quarter of each sheet to hang over the tray edges so there’s overhang on all sides. Lightly brush the filo with oil. Lay two sheets straight down the middle to create a solid base, brushing with oil between each one.

Working with a quarter of the filling, spoon it over the filo in three thin logs lengthways. Lay two filo sheets on top, brushing each one with oil and pushing down in between the filling, so it looks like three speed bumps in rows. Working with another quarter of the filling, spoon over three more logs of filling into the gaps created so you end up with a flat top. Place a couple more filo sheets on top, brushing each one with oil. 

Repeat layering once more with the remaining filling and more filo. Finish with a couple of filo sheets, brushing with oil. Using the brush, push the overhanging filo up over the top. Using a serrated knife, cut just through the top layer into eight squares (see Notes). Scatter the sesame seeds over the top. Bake for 1 hour 30–1 hour 40 minutes, or until golden. Set aside until cool to the touch, then cut all the way through the pieces to serve.

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Another recipe from Eat More Greek — 

Turkish grain salad