Deep dish spanakopita

With a creamy, spinach-y and salty filling and crisp buttery pastry, this version of the classic Greek pie uses two ingredients I think should always be in the freezer: spinach and filo.

Credit: Mary Makes It Easy

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  50 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 500 g (about 2 pkgs) frozen spinach
• 10 sheets (about 280 g) frozen filo (phyllo) dough
• 1½ tbsp (30 ml) olive oil
• 1 onion, finely diced
• Kosher salt, to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 garlic clove, grated
• 1½ tbsp finely chopped parsley
• 2 tbsp + 1 tsp finely chopped dill
• ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 2 cups (about 250 g) crumbled feta cheese
• 1 egg
• ⅓ cup (75 g) unsalted butter, melted

Defrosting time: overnight

Cooling time: 10 minutes

Instructions

1. Defrost the spinach and phyllo dough in the fridge overnight.

2. For the filling, heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat, add the onion, season with salt and pepper and cook until softened and lightly golden brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently then remove the pan from the heat and stir in the parsley, dill, red pepper flakes, nutmeg and lemon zest. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

3. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 175°C  (350°F). Drain the spinach through a strainer lined with a clean kitchen towel or a few layers of sturdy paper towel. Gather the spinach up in the towel and squeeze out as much of the water as possible. Transfer to a bowl, add the lemon juice and feta. Stir in the cooled onion mixture and egg.

4. Retrieve the filo from the fridge, unroll it and cover it with a clean kitchen towel to keep it from drying out. Place a 23 cm (9 inch) springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet and brush the bottom and sides lightly with butter. Lay out one sheet of filo, brush with butter and transfer it to the prepared pan. There is no need to be extra careful here – the filo might tear, crack or rumple up a bit but that just makes for more texture in the end result. Layer on two more buttered sheets of pastry across the bottom of the pan.

5. Continue buttering the filo as before but begin placing the remaining sheets off-centre around the pan so that their edges overlap in the centre of the base and the other edge hangs over the sides, gently pressing along the bottom and up the sides to create a crust. Transfer the spinach filling into the filo crust and spread into an even layer.

6. Gather and fold the overhanging filo overtop of the edges of the spinach, leaving the centre bit of spinach exposed. Brush the pastry with remaining butter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until golden brown and crisp. Allow to cool slightly before removing from the pan and serving.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.