Fresh Spinach and Feta Pastries – Spanakopitas

Also known as Spanakopita, or if you’re in my family “spankys”! 

I love to do interestiing things with spinach – and here it is the perfect foil for the salty feta, the pungent garlic and the toasty pine nuts. All enveloped in buttery layers of flaky phyllo dough, it is a sheer transformation of simple ingredients into something delectable. They freeze beautifully, and it really helps having several of these up my sleeve during the holidays.

I used the Athens brand country style phyllo sheets, which claimed to be easier to use and able to stand up to heavy or wetter fillings, and indeed they did.

Ingredients for Spinach and Feta Pastry Recipe:

• 1/2 package of phyllo sheets, available in the freezer section
•  2 lbs. of fresh spinach
•  4 ounces of feta cheese
• A handful of pine nuts
•  3 large scallions
• 2 large cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 fresh lemon, juiced
•  1/2 stick  butter
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper

Leaving the dough on the counter to thaw,  rinse and quick saute the spinach until just wilted.  Allow to cool then  squeeze out the excess water and chop finely with a knife.

Toast the pinenuts in a dry non-stick pan for a few minutes, and crumble the feta.

Next, chop the scallions down their lengths and saute them with the garlic and toasted  pine nuts.

In a medium mixing bowl using a hand blender (or in a food processor)  combine the nuts, feta, scallion and garlic and give it a few quick buzzes.

 Add the chopped spinach, an egg, a dash of salt and a few grinds of black pepper and the juice of half the lemon.  That’s it for the filling!

When thawed,  follow the package directions for the use of the phyllo sheets. As the packaged had proclaimed,   this thicker country style phyllo was indeed easier to work with.

Lay one sheet of the dough on a cutting board and brush generously with melted butter.  Lay another sheet on top of that, brush with butter and repeat with a third sheet.

Cut the sheets into three even strips – lengthwise.

 Onto the first strip put a nice pile of the filling in the lower corner and fold the pastry up, as such:

Just keep turning it over down the length until all the edges are enveloped and trim the excess away with a knife. I used some of the trimmings to make a cigar shaped pastry – they were fun too!

 Put into a 350 degree oven, on an ungreased non-stick pan for about 25 minutes.

They were too hot to eat right from the oven, so I rubbed a little more butter on top, a sprinkle of salt, a squeeze of lemon and tried to wait patiently. When they had cooled down a bit, I was anxious to see how this thicker phyllo dough would taste. It was much easier to handle to be certain, and makes this easy recipe a good choice for a beginner as well.