Spanakopita
Total Time
30 to 45 minutes prep; 45 to 60 to bake
Prep Time
30 to 45 minutes
Cook Time
45 to 60 minutes
Rating
4.8 out of 5 stars
(100)
Ingredients
12-16 servings
- 1 1/4 pounds (20 ounces or 565 grams) baby spinach [see Note about frozen], roughly chopped
- 1 cup red onion (from 1 small or half a large), finely chopped
- 6 to 8 scallions (about 2.25 ounces or 65 grams) scallions thinly sliced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh dill, or more to taste
- 1/3 cup chopped fresh mint, or more to taste
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 3/4 pound (12 ounces or 340 grams) feta, drained, crumbled
- 1 large egg
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1-pound (454-gram) package phyllo/filo pastry, defrosted [see Note]
- Olive oil
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Preparation
Step 1
Heat oven to 375°F (190°C).
Step 2
In your largest bowl place spinach, onion, scallions, garlic, herbs, and feta. Use your (freshly-washed, of course) hands to mix everything together, truly squeezing the feta into the other ingredients and breaking up the spinach a bit more as you do. I promise it’s fun.
Step 3
When the ingredients are tightly mixed, taste a pinch and add salt and pepper as needed to season it well — I use 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt and many grinds of black pepper.
Step 4
Add egg and mix until it disappears into the spinach.
Step 5
Unwrap and unroll your phyllo so it’s in a flat pile and ready to use. I do not keep it covered with a cloth because we will use it fast.
Step 6
Coat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet or equivalent pan (12-inch cake pan or a 9×13-inch baking dish) generously with olive oil.
Step 7
Arrange 4 to 6 sheets of phyllo around the pan, draping each across the bottom and letting the extra hang off over the side of the pan. Drizzle with olive oil.
Step 8
Rumple 2 to 3 sheets phyllo (one at a time) so they just cover the bottom of the pan. Drizzle with olive oil.
Step 9
Arrange half of the spinach mixture across the bottom.
Step 10
Scrunch 4 to 6 sheets of phyllo (think: hamburger-shaped) and arrange over spinach; drizzle with olive oil.
Step 11
Spoon remaining spinach mixture evenly over these scrunched sheets.
Step 12
Fold the parts of the phyllo sheets draped over the sides of the pan over the spinach filling, one at a time. Drizzle this closed top with more olive oil.
Step 13
One at a time, rumple remaining sheets so they fit over the top of the pan. Every layer or two, drizzle with more olive oil, and finish with a final drizzle olive oil.
Step 14
Use a sharp, serrated knife, cut the spanakopita into serving-sized squares.
Step 15
Bake in preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes, until the top is very crispy and nicely browned.
Step 16
Let cool on a rack for 15 minutes before serving; you’ll need to cut again, most likely, but it won’t mess up the pastry very much.
Step 17
Leftovers keep for 1 week in the fridge (and could also be frozen). To reheat from the fridge, place uncovered in a 350-degree oven until warmed through and the pastry is crisp again, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Step 18
Save recipe for the next time?
Chef's notes
You can use fresh or frozen spinach for this. If using frozen spinach, you’ll need roughly 1 1/2 10-ounce packages (each package is equivalent to 1 pound fresh). You’ll want to defrost it and squeeze out any extra liquid when you do.
Phyllo/filo:
Short of making your own from scratch (truly not as scary as it sounds, but that post for another day), you’ll want to buy it prepared. It usually comes frozen and most packages will tell you to defrost it in the fridge for a day before using.
Phyllo pastry comes in many thickness. Julie recommended No. 7, which is thicker than what I could get, No. 4. All will work, but there might be fewer sheets of a thicker one a 1-pound package, and this is totally and completely fine. But, when there is a range in the recipe (i.e. “Crumple 4 to 6 sheets…”), you’ll use the lower number for a thicker phyllo.
