Spanakopita
This recipe creates flaky spanakopita rolls filled with a savory mixture of spinach, onion, feta, egg, and sour cream. The phyllo dough is layered with butter and folded into egg-roll shapes, then baked until golden and crisp. It's a quick take on the classic Greek pastry.
Equipment
- 1 Small Pan For sauteing
- 1 Bowl For mixing filling
- 1 Pastry Brush For applying butter
- 1 Large work surface For assembling pastries
- 1 Cookie sheet For baking
Ingredients
Main
- 1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil half a turn of the pan
- 1 small onion finely chopped
- 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
- Salt and pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg ground or freshly grated
- 4 ounces feta with black pepper or plain feta crumbled into tiny bits
- 1 egg beaten
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 4 13 by 17-inch sheets, defrosted phyllo pastry dough
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
Instructions
- Place oven rack in center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
- Preheat a small pan over medium to medium high heat. Add oil and onion and saute 5 minutes. Place onion in a bowl. Add chopped dry, defrosted spinach and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add feta to the bowl and combine it with spinach. Add beaten egg and sour cream to the bowl and combine with cheese, spinach and onion.
- On a large work surface, place 1 sheet of phyllo. Paint half of the sheet with a little melted butter, paying extra attention to your perimeter. Fold sheet in half. Pile 1/4 of your spinach mixture into a log shape working 2 inches from bottom and each side. Tuck bottom up and fold both sides in, then roll and wrap upwards until you reach the edge of the dough sheet. Each pastry will resemble an egg roll. Paint the seam and the ends of the roll with butter and set roll seam side down on a cookie sheet. Repeat and make 4 rolls. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly golden all over and serve.
Notes
Ensure spinach is thoroughly squeezed dry after defrosting; excess moisture will make the filling soggy and potentially rupture the phyllo. Work quickly with phyllo dough, keeping unused sheets covered with a damp towel to prevent drying out. Be generous with the melted butter between layers and on the finished rolls for maximum crispness and golden color. Don't overfill the pastries, which can make them hard to roll and prone to breaking during baking. A combination of feta and a softer cheese like ricotta or cream cheese can add a creamier texture to the filling.