Traditional Homemade Spanakopita (Easy From Scratch Greek Spinach Pie)

Recipe

Ingredients

For the phyllo dough

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
• 5 teaspoons olive oil
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar or plain white vinegar
• ¾ cups warm water (just above Lukewarm but not hot)

For Dusting and Brushing Phyllo

• 2 tablespoons of corn starch for dusting
• ¼-½ cup flour for dusting
• ¼ cup melted butter, plus more if needed
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil, plus more if needed

For the Filling

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 312 g or 11 oz of spinach (I use baby spinach but if you are using regular spinach make sure to roughly chop it)
• 1 leek white and light green parts only, cleaned well and sliced
• 3 spring onions, white and green parts sliced
• 1 cup of crumbled feta cheese(approx 200 grams)
• 3 eggs
• 3 tablespoons ricotta cheese
• ¼ cup chopped fresh herbs (I always do a combination of fresh dill and parsley)
  
  

Directions

Make The Phyllo Dough

1. Place flour in a medium mixing bowl and make a well in the center of it. Drizzle in olive oil and add salt; and add the white wine vinegar and warm water. Mix until a rough dough starts to come together. Then empty it out onto a lightly floured work surface.
2. Knead until dough is smooth, using just enough flour to keep it from sticking to the work surface or your hands, 2 or 3 minutes. Continue to knead until dough is supple and elastic, about 5 more minutes. Wrap dough ball in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature, ½ hour or for up to 3 hours. If making a head you can wrap and refrigerate for up to two days.

Make The Filling

1. While the dough is resting it’s time to get started with the filling. In a large skillet heat olive oil over medium heat and add the leeks and the green onions and allow to cook 3-5 min stirring often until softened. Add the spinach and cook tossing and stirring until wilted another 5-7 minutes adding a little extra olive oil If needed. (It looks like a lot of spinach but it will wilt down fast) Once wilted continue to cook an extra 1-2 minutes to cook off as much extra moisture as possible. Set aside to cool while you prep the dough.
2. Once cool add dill and parsley, feta cheese and ricotta cheese to the spinach mixture stirring well to combine, then season with salt and pepper to taste. (Now is the time to taste it before adding in the eggs). Then stir in the eggs until well incorporated. Set aside.

Shape Phyllo Dough & Roll Out

1. Once ready to make your pita. Unwrap and place on clean working surface. Roll it into a log trying to keep it as even as possible in thickness from one end to the other, approx 10 inches long. Cut log into two right down the middle then each half into two and then each of those halves into two, so you have 8 portions. No need to use a scale but you can if you are picky. (I tend to reserve the larger pieces for the bottom part of the pita and the smaller ones for the top of it - don’t worry if they aren’t totally even) Roll each portion into a ball. Place on plate or parchment paper and cover with plastic wrap to prevent dough balls from drying out while you begin to roll them out.
2. Mix cornstarch with a ¼-½ cup of flour for dusting while you roll out your balls. Dust a work surface and the first dough ball lightly with the cornstarch/flour mixture. Flatten out the dough ball with your fingers and then roll it out with a rolling pin into a flat disc/circle, about 5 inches in diameter. Set circle to one side. Then repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Try to keep the circles as close to the same size and shape as possible. They don’t have to be perfect just as close as possible.
3. Melt butter and place in a small bowl and allow to cool slightly then stir in the olive oil.
4. Place one of the circles of dough onto plate and using a pastry brush, generously brush dough with the olive oil/butter mixture. Repeat with four more circles brushing each in between but DO NOT brush the top of the last one. Then use your fingers to press down on the edges of the stack sealing them. Place plate in fridge to chill while you do the same for the remaining 3 on a separate plate then chill that stack too while you finish making filling

Assemble Spanakopita

1. Prepare Pan: Preheat oven to 350°F. Prepare a 10-12 inch skillet or baking pan by brushing the bottom and sides of the pan generously with the butter/olive oil mix and set aside.
2. Roll Out Bottom Phyllo: Take the 5 layer stacked dough out of the fridge. Peel it off the plate and place on working surface dusted with the flour/cornstarch mixture. Start rolling it out dusting with flour lightly if needed and peeling it off the work surface to dust if needed so that it’s not sticking to surface. Roll out nice and thin - a thin as possible until you have rolled it out 2-3 inches beyond the size of the pan (approx 12-14 inches depending on pan size) you are using to bake it in. Pick dough up by rolling it onto your rolling pin. Then roll it off onto the prepared baking pan or skillet. Then use your hands to place it in pan evenly with excess phyllo hanging over the edge of pan.
3. Drizzle top of dough with olive oil/butter mixture and set aside.
4. Roll Out Top Phyllo: Take out the remaining 3 layer dough disc and roll out the same way and the same width as the last. Pick it up by rolling it on to rolling pin and set aside
5. Add Filling: Spoon filling onto the dough in pan and smooth out evenly into pan. I like to use a slotted spoon and leave back Amy excess juices the have accumulated.
6. Place Top Layer Over Filling: Unroll the top portion of dough over the pan then use your hands to tuck it into pan over filling - letting it sag in areas and overlap like a messy tablecloth.
7. Roll Up Edges & Grease Phyllo: Roll up the overhanging portion from the base layer working your way around the entire pan. Brush the edges with butter/oil mixture then drizzle the top of it generously with it.
8. Score Phyllo & Bake: Score the top of the dough with a sharp knife portioning it out into slices (gently - no need to cut right through the dough). Bake in preheated oven for about 55-60 minutes until the phyllo is crisp and deeply golden brown.
9. Cool & Slice: Remove from the oven and allow to cool 5-10 minutes before cutting into pieces using the scored markings as a guide. Enjoy as is or serve the spanakopita with my Greek salad section Classic Greek Village Salad (Horiatiki) or my Classic Greek Lettuce Salad (Maroulosalata).
   
   

Recipe Notes

• To make ahead: You can knead your dough and let it rest for up to 3 hours wrapped at room temperature. Or you can wrap and refrigerate it for up to 2 days. Allow it to come to rom temperature before rolling it out.
• You can roll out your circles or discs of dough and butter them up in 5 and 3 layers and make these ahead as well. I would just cover the plate with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 1 -2 days ahead. When ready to roll them out allow them to sit at room temperature for a couple minutes before rolling so it’s easier to roll them out.
• Your filling can me be made a day ahead and stored in a sealed container in the fridge.
• I DO NOT recommend freezing the spanakopita AFTER it has baked. If you are freezing it do it BEFORE you bake it. Make as directed above right up to scoring the pieces. Then wrap in plastic wrap and then foil tightly and place in the freeezer - then bake right from frozen removing the foil and plastic wrap, allowing more baking time as needed.
  
  

Storage

• Leftover spanakopita will keep well in a sealed container stored in the fridge for up to 2 to 3 days. It’s best reheated In the oven until warmed through. Unfortunately it will lose its initial flakiness but will still be delicious.

For the dough

• For a 10-12 inch pan I find this dough amount just perfect. It could even work well for a 9 inch pan too although your phyllo layers might be a bit thicker. If you want to make a large pan of this spanakopita round or rectangular or a large sheetpan of it I recommend doubling the dough and filling recipe.
• The reason I separate the dough discs into 5 and 3 layers is because I always need extra layers on the bottom to hold the filling without it getting soggy. You can switch it up and do half and half if you prefer that. But I would not go less that 3-4 sheets sheets of phyllo on the bottom cause no one likes a soggy spanakopita or one that falls apart because the bottom can’t hold the filling.