Spinach Pie (Spanakopita)

Intermediate Cook - Medium Cooking Time - Appetizer - Baked Good - Side Dish - Vegetarian

Spinach pie or spanakopita is one of the better known Greek foods. If you have had spanakopita before, there is a good chance you had it wrapped in very thin and flaky phyllo pasty dough. While I enjoy this preparation and will write about it in a future post, our family prefers spanakopita prepared with our homemade pastry dough. Personally, I find the homemade dough easier to work with and love its crunchiness. It also holds up better when dipped into the many sauces of the various dishes we prepare. For this recipe, I will show you how to make both spanakopita "pockets" as well as a spanakopita "log". 

Ingredients (Serves 4)

• 1 pound whole leaf or chopped spinach
• 1 large red onion
• 1 tablespoon dried dill or 1 handful chopped fresh dill
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 15 ounces feta cheese
• 1 egg
• 1 pound pie dough

Time - 1 hour and 15 minutes

• Preparation - 30 minutes
• Baking (350 degrees) - 45 minutes

Preparation

• Peel and chop the onion
• Place the olive oil, onion, spinach, and dill in a large sauté pan

• Cook on medium heat until the onions are soft
• Once the onions have softened, set aside and let cool

• While the spinach is cooling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees and make the dough
• Once the spinach has cooled for 10-15 minutes, place in a large bowl and mix together with the egg and feta

If preparing spanakopita pockets:

• Roll out the dough
• Using a large circle shaped cookie cutter, cup, etc,, cut out large circles from the dough
• Place one tablespoon of filling in the center of the dough
• Fold the dough over and using a fork, close the edges
• Place the pockets on an oiled baking sheet

If preparing a spanakopita log:

• Place the rolled out dough on an oiled baking sheet
• Spoon the filling into the center of the dough
• Fold over the ends followed by the sides. Try to keep the amount of overlapping dough to a minimum. You want it to overlap just enough for the log to stay put but not so much that you end up with inner layers of unbaked dough
• Using a toothpick or fork, poke a few small holes on the top of the log to prevent air pockets from forming when the dough bakes, which is what happened below (oops!)

• Bake the pockets for approximately 25 minutes and the log for approximately 45 minutes, until the dough is a light golden brown