Virginias Excellent Greek Spanakopita Recipes

Steps:

• Defrost, drain, and squeeze the spinach dry as possible and set aside.
• Heat a large skillet and add oil.
• Saute onion for a few minutes, just until they begin to get translucent, not brown.
• Add scallions and saute a few minutes longer.
• Add parsley and dill and saute for a few seconds.
• Season with pepper (she poured some into the cap of the pepper jar and dumped it in- she said approximately 1 tsp).
• Combine lightly beaten eggs, spinach,feta,Parmesan cheese, and the onions mixture in a large bowl, mixing gently until combined.
• Using a pastry brush,very lightly butter a large jelly roll pan (approx 11"x14")- it should be a large rectangular shape with fairly low sides.
• Set a sheet or two of phyllo pastry into the pan to evenly cover the bottom, and then brush very lightly with butter (she said to not go overboard with the butter).
• Repeat until you have 10 layers of pastry in the pan (if using #4 thickness; if using the thicker #7 size, then make 1 or 2 fewer layers).
• Spread spinach mixture evenly in the pan.
• Preheat oven to 300°F.
• Meanwhile, layer another 10 layers of phyllo pastry on top, as before, folding and tucking in edges at the corners as you go.
• Using a clean spray bottle filled with some cold water, lightly mist surface- this will produce a crispy top layer.
• Using a sharp knife, cut into 24 squares.
• Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour.

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, scallions and garlic, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 minutes.
• In batches, stir in spinach until wilted, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Strain spinach mixture through a sieve, pressing out excess liquid to prevent a soggy crust. Transfer to a large bowl and cool for 5 minutes. Add eggs, feta, Parmesan and parsley and stir until combined.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-13-inch pan (2 inches deep) with butter. Lay one half sheet of phyllo dough in baking dish. Using a pastry brush, brush dough with butter. Repeat 7 more times to form crust. Spread spinach mixture evenly over crust. Brush one half sheet of phyllo dough with butter and lay on top of filling, butter side up. Repeat with remaining 7 sheets of dough. Using a serrated knife, lightly score top layer of dough into squares (this will make it easier to cut once baked). Bake until crust is lightly golden and filling is heated through, 50 to 60 minutes. Serve warm.