Scrambled Eggs, Cheese, and Avocado Tortilla Bowl Recipe
September 16, 2025
Spanakopita (Greek Spinach Pie) Recipe
Spanakopita: the long-lasting conventional Greek Spinach Pie encased in layers upon layers of golden, buttery and flaky filo pastry. For the very best Spanakopita of your life, use uncooked relatively than cooked spinach, and bind the phyllo pastry layers utilizing slightly finely shredded Greek cheese so that they keep collectively relatively than flying all over the place if you reduce it!
If I had been to compile the Biggest Hits of dishes I’ve served to mates in recent times, this one shoots straight to the record. It made an look at a current gathering, and to say it was the preferred dish of the evening could be an understatement.
It was the very first thing to go. There have been rave critiques across the desk. We had been selecting on the leftover shards of filo pastry lengthy after the final piece had disappeared.
However the greatest praise? Silence. To say my group of mates are chatty is a little bit of an understatement. So when one thing renders them completely silent on the desk? It’s a severe praise!! 😂
Right here’s what you want to make this conventional Greek Spinach Pie.
Recent spinach
Skip the frozen spinach and comfort luggage of child spinach. For the very best flavour, the very best filling texture, and to make sure the pie base stays crispy, you can not beat contemporary spinach. Sorry people! You understand I all the time provide handy options if I believe I can get away with it, however on this case, I can’t!
You will have 2 large bunches weighing round 600g/ 1.2lb in whole so as to get ~300g/10oz of spinach leaves, as soon as they’re trimmed from the stems.
Different Elements
Along with spinach, listed below are the opposite substances you want for the Spanakopita filling:
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Feta – The opposite key filling ingredient together with spinach. A mixture that’s as Greek because it will get!
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Dill and mint – The contemporary herb flavours convey an unmissable style to Spanakopita. Don’t skip it!
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Greek yogurt – Or different unsweetened plain yogurt. This can be a moist ingredient that makes the filling good and juicy, however not so moist that it makes the pastry base soggy;
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Greek kefalotyri cheese – A standard Greek arduous cheese made out of sheep or goat’s milk. It tastes considerably like parmesan however is completely different and never as salty or sharp. That is used between the filo sheet layers that kind the the highest of the Spanakopita so that they stick collectively relatively than flying all over the place if you reduce – neat trick!
It’s bought at Woolworths and Coles in Australia, or European/Greek delis. Don’t fret in the event you can’t discover it, readily-available cheeses like parmesan, pecorino or romano make wonderful substitute! Use leftover kefalotyri cheese for Pastitsio, the normal Greek Pasta Bake;
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Egg – That is what binds the filling collectively. Egg is, in spite of everything, the very best meals glue identified to mankind!
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Garlic – As a result of hardly ever will you see a Greek dish with out garlic (normally rather more than only one clove!);
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Nutmeg – That is the signature spice utilized in Spanakopita fillings;
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Cayenne pepper – Only a contact, to not make it spicy, however to supply a touch of heat. It brings an additional little something-something to this Spanakopita!
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Lemon – Some zest and juice for brightness;
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Inexperienced onion – For sweetness and its onion-y style within the filling;
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Butter – Loads right here, for brushing on every layer of the filo pastry! It provides flavour plus retains every layer separated so that you get the signature flakiness. Need to up your Spanakopita sport? Use clarified butter as an alternative – the buttery flavour is much more intense!
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Sesame seeds – To sprinkle on the floor. Utilizing each white and black is a stunning signature look, however you may simply double up on one or the opposite!
Spanakopita is encased with filo pastry on the bottom and prime. Also referred to as phyllo pastry, this can be a very skinny, parchment-like pastry. It’s used to make each savoury and candy pastries and pies in Mediterranean and Center Jap cuisines, similar to Baklava. It comes frozen or contemporary, within the fridge part of grocery shops.
I do know some individuals are a bit intimidated by the considered working with filo pastry. It may be vulnerable to breaking if not dealt with appropriately. However in the event you comply with just a few easy steps, there’s nothing difficult about it in any respect!
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Fridge (ie. contemporary) filo pastry is less complicated to deal with – It’s extra pliable than frozen-then-thawed, so that you don’t should be as cautious dealing with it. Discover it within the fridge part of grocery shops, normally alongside contemporary pasta;
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If utilizing frozen filo pastry – Thaw in a single day within the fridge. By no means attempt to velocity up thawing by putting in a heat setting. It dries the pastry out and makes it brittle so it tends to shatter;
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Take it out of the fridge half-hour beforehand – Whether or not utilizing frozen thawed or contemporary. Bringing it to room temperature makes it extra pliable and due to this fact simpler to deal with;
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Hold the phyllo pastry coated with a barely damp tea towel to make sure it doesn’t dry out; and
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Deal with like tissue paper, ie. with fairy fingers. Don’t manhandle it like a slice of ham!
It does take time to layer and butter the filo pastry sheets one after the other. However slightly effort apart, I believe you’ll be shock how easy Spanakopita is to make!
Half 1: Filling
The important thing to the filling is to take away as a lot water from the spinach as you may so it doesn’t make the pastry base soggy. We don’t cook dinner the spinach – the filling flavour is best made with uncooked relatively than cooked spinach. A bit tip I picked up from among the finest Greek eating places in Sydney, Alpha Restaurant!
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Sweat spinach with salt to take away water – Sprinkle chopped spinach with slightly salt, then depart for 10 minutes. The salt will draw moisture out of the spinach which makes it simpler to squeeze out the water;
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Wring out water – Put a handful of spinach on a clear tea towel. Bundle it up and twist firmly to squeeze out the water. It’s best to work with a handful at a time so you are able to do this step correctly. I normally do it in 3 batches;
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Filling – Place spinach with the remaining filling substances in a big bowl; and
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Combine nicely – Combine filling nicely till it’s mixed. It ought to be moist and juicy, however you shouldn’t see any water leaching out of the spinach into the bottom of the bowl.
Half 2: Assembling
You typically see Spanakopita baked in a pie dish. I choose it freeform, baked on a tray, as a result of the filo pastry is crispier – the bottom and sides.
As famous above, I like to recommend utilizing refrigerated relatively than frozen filo pastry as a result of it’s simpler to work with. It’s extra pliable, and there’s no must plan forward and thaw in a single day.
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Trim filo pastry – Take the filo pastry out of the fridge half-hour previous to convey it to room temperature. This makes it extra pliable and fewer vulnerable to breaking. Then reduce 16 sheets to dimension: 32 x 25cm / 13 x 10″ (rectangle shapes, pictured) or 26cm / 10.5″ squares.
This makes a Spanakopita pie which is 3.5 – 4cm / 1.4 – 1.6″ thick which I believe is the proper thickness for filling to pastry ratio. Any thicker, and there’s an excessive amount of filling. Any thinner, and there’s an excessive amount of pastry!
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The pie base: 8 filo sheets, buttered – Lay a sheet of filo pastry on a baking paper-lined tray, then brush with melted butter. The butter not solely provides flavour, it additionally causes every base layer to separate so that you get the signature flakiness;
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Repeat – After brushing with butter, prime with one other sheet of filo pastry and proceed repeating till you could have used 8 sheets in whole;
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Filling – Unfold the filling in the midst of the pastry base, leaving a 2.5cm/1″ border. Make the floor as degree as potential, urgent down evenly to compact the filling;
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Brush with butter – Brush the borders of the pastry with butter;
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The pie prime: 5 filo sheets, butter + cheese – Cowl the filling with a sheet of filo pastry. Brush with butter then sprinkle with kefalotyri cheese. Cowl with one other sheet of filo pastry and repeat. Do filo → butter → kefalotyri cheese for the primary 5 sheets of filo pastry;
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Grating kefalotyri cheese – You’ll be able to both grate the cheese then sprinkle it on along with your hand, or measure out the quantity of cheese required then grate it straight onto the filo pastry (you get extra even protection this manner);
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The pie prime (ultimate sheets): 3 sheets filo, butter solely – For filo pastry sheets # 6, #7 and #8, simply use butter in between every layer. We skip the cheese for visible causes; you may see the golden brown bits of cheese underneath the highest layers of the filo in any other case. It additionally encourages extra puffiness for these layers. Nevertheless it’s actually not an enormous deal in the event you neglect!
Half 3: Ending
The crimping you see in these steps is optionally available. It’s completely acceptable simply to press down and seal the sides flat towards the tray!
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Pinch corners firmly to tuck within the surplus filo pastry;
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Trim the filo pastry throughout utilizing scissors so it’s round 2cm / 4/5″ excessive. We don’t need it sticking up an excessive amount of greater in any other case the ends would possibly turn into too browned or burn;
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Butter and sesame seeds – Brush the floor with melted butter, then sprinkle with sesame seeds;
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Bake 25 minutes in a 220°C/430°F oven. A scorching oven is vital right here to make the pastry superbly golden and crisp on prime and on the bottom with out overcooking the spinach filling!
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Voila! Set your masterpiece on its serving stage and be ready for the unimaginable consuming expertise about to happen!
And oh my phrase … the odor that wafts out from the filling if you reduce it open is 100% unimaginable! The fragrance of contemporary dill and mint, the contemporary spinach, the tacky goodness of the feta, the delicate notes of nutmeg and garlic … it sends everybody inside nose-shot right into a salivating stupor!
You’ll be able to see within the photograph above how the filo pastry topping continues to be ultra-flaky however continues to be (fortunately) sitting comfortably atop the Filling. That is because of the little trick of layering the filo pastry with a little bit of cheese which makes them stick collectively (whereas concurrently nonetheless permitting for good, flaky, puffing motion) relatively than flying all over the place.
As a result of whereas we do love that spinach filling, let’s face it: Spanakopita wouldn’t be Spanakopita with out that flaky, crispy, buttery and wafer-thin pastry. We like it, and we would like a lot of it. So if all of it fell off after we began reducing up the pie, it might simply make us unhappy wouldn’t it?
Certain, we’d scramble and salvage each little pastry shard we might discover off the tray / desk / plate. Nevertheless it actually is a lot extra satisfying when all these layers of filo pastry really keep ON the Spana, leaving the proper consuming expertise intact! Proper? 🙂 – Johnsat x
PS. It was a beautiful discovery at my “New Years’ Eve (Take 2)” get together I held a few weeks in the past that Spanakopita may be assembled earlier within the day and baked within the night, and also you’d be none the wiser. I used to be involved the bottom would possibly get soggy, however I used to be unsuitable. Nevertheless I’m not satisfied you may get pretty much as good a end result if it’s left within the fridge in a single day or frozen (unbaked). I might love to be confirmed unsuitable on these factors, so please do share your findings within the remark part in the event you attempt it!
Ingredients
- 300g/10oz English spinach leaves , trimmed from thick stems, thoroughly washed, dried, then chopped into 2.5cm/1" pieces (Note 1)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 175g/6oz Greek feta , crumbled
- 1/2 cup Greek yoghurt
- 2 green onions / scallions , finely sliced
- 1 egg
- 2 tbsp mint , finely chopped
- 1 tbsp dill , finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 garlic cloves , finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg , freshly grated
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 16 sheets filo pastry (Note 2)
- 120g/ 8 tbsp butter , melted
- 60g / 2/3 cup Greek Kefalotyri cheese , finely grated (sub parmesan, Note 3)
- 1/2 tsp white sesame seeds (or more black)
- 1/2 tsp black sesame seeds (or more white)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 220°C/430°F (200°C fan). Line a tray with baking paper / parchment paper.
- Sweat spinach: Place spinach in a large colander or bowl. Sprinkle with salt, toss through. Leave for 10 minutes to sweat.
- Wring out water: Place a handful of spinach in a tea towel, then wring out tightly to remove excess water.
- Filling: Place spinach in a bowl with remaining Filling ingredients. Mix well to combine.
- Trim filo: Cut 16 sheets of filo pastry into 32 x 25cm / 13 x 10" (pictured) or 26cm / 10.5" square.
- 8 base layers: Layer 8 sheets of filo pastry on the tray, brushing each layer with melted butter.
- Filling: Spread filling on filo pastry. Smooth surface and leave a 2.5cm / 1" border.
- 8 Filo topping layers (Note 4): Cover spinach with a sheet of filo pastry. Brush with butter, sprinkle with Kefalotyri. Repeat for Sheets #2 to #5. Then cover with filo sheets #6 to #8, brushing with butter in between, but do NOT sprinkle with cheese (neater finish).
- Seal: Press edges down to seal. Crimp and trim if desired (see process steps in post or video) or just leave the edges flat on the tray.
- Sesame seeds: Brush the top with butter, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- Bake: Bake 25 minutes, or until golden brown on the surface.
- Serve! Serve immediately! It is at its absolute prime fresh out of the oven, though still good as long as its hot (~15 min or so). The base does lose crispiness as it cools.
Notes
1. Spinach – This recipe is best made using bunches of fresh true spinach (not chard / silverbeet), known as English Spinach.
You will need ~2 large bunches weighing 600g/ 1.2lb in total in order to get ~300g/10oz of spinach leaves once trimmed from the stems.
Pick off the leaves, weigh out 300g/10oz. Wash thoroughly (spinach leaves are notoriously dirty!). Then dry and chop. I dry using a salad spinner, in batches, or spread out on tea towels and leave to air dry.
2. Filo pastry (aka phyllo pastry) – Paper thin pastry sheets used in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cooking. It’s easier to use refrigerated filo pastry if you can, as it’s more pliable than frozen thawed and thus easier to handle. Take it out of the fridge 30 minutes prior. Once you take it out of the package, keep it covered with a slightly damp tea towel so it doesn’t dry out.
Australia: I recommend Antoniou brand filo pastry sold in the fridge section. You will need 1 x 375g packs which has 18 to 22 sheets in each pack (we need 16 for this recipe). See below for usage ideas for leftovers, including trimmings. If you use the frozen packs, you’ll need 1 pack but they often only have 15 sheets so you’ll need to assemble the offcuts to do one of the layers.
US: I understand the standard size is 1 lb packs which has 40 sheets so you’ll have a fair amount of leftovers. Make 2 Spanakopita, hey?!!!
Frozen phyllo pastry – Thaw overnight in the fridge. Don’t try to rush the thawing by placing it in a warm place. It makes the pastry brittle. Handle with care, as it is less pliable than refrigerated pastry.
Puff pastry alternative – Though not the same, you could use puff pastry instead of filo pastry. The bake time will be closer to 40 minutes.
3. Kefalotyri Greek cheese – This is a hard Greek sheep or goat’s milk cheese, similar to parmesan but not as salty. Best substitutes in order of preference: Kefalograviera, pecorino, parmesan or romano cheese.
4. Top layers – The cheese makes the top layers of filo pastry stick together so it doesn’t fly everywhere when you cut it. A neat trick! However, we also skip the cheese on the final 2 layers so you do’t see dark brown bits of cheese under the surface (ie. for visual reasons; it doesn’t look as nice if you can see golden brown cheese under the top layers of filo).
5. Make ahead: As long as you extract the excess liquid out of the spinach very well, it can be assembled early in the day then baked that evening which I have done successfully. I am not sure about leaving overnight. I don’t recommend freezing a raw Spanakopita because I think the filling will become watery as it thaws which will make the base soggy. Will update it if I try it out!
6. Storage and reheating – Spanakopita will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days. It’s best reheated in the oven – around 15 – 20 mins at 180C until hot in the centre (check internal temperature with a metal skewer or paring knife touched to the lip, else a temperature probe). It won’t be quite as crispy as fresh, but still delicious! Microwave if you must but the pastry will not be crisp. Spanakopita is also perfectly tasty at room temperature!
7. Nutrition – For one serving, based on 4 servings total.
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