Wednesday 2 February 2011

Greek influences, spanakopita!

When I was a kid, living in Barcelona, we used to live really close to a Greek restaurant, I believe its name was Dyonissos, as in the God of wine . Anyway, we used to often eat there, and one of my favourite things was Spanakopita, which is basically a spinach pie.
There is also a cheese version, which is delicious, and I think it is made in the same way, just replacing the spinach by feta cheese...


Recipe for spanakopita: 



SPANAKOPITA (Greek Spinach Pie)
2 tablespoons olive oi
l1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
About 800g spinach, rinsed and chopped (I used four 200g bags)
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
6-8 sheets filo pastry
olive oil for brushing on pastry
Preheat oven to 175 degrees C. Lightly oil a baking dish / pan.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic until soft and lightly browned. Stir in spinach and parsley, and continue to saute until spinach is wilted. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, and feta. Stir in spinach mixture. Lay 1 sheet of filo pastry in prepared baking dish, and brush lightly with olive oil. Lay another sheet of filo pastry on top, brush with olive oil, and repeat process with one more sheet of filo.
Spread spinach and cheese mixture into pan and fold overhanging pastry over filling. Brush with oil, then layer remaining 3 sheets of pastry, brushing each with oil. Tuck overhanging bits into pan to seal filling.
Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown. Cut into squares and serve while hot.





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