How to make spanakopita or Greek spinach, raisin and feta pie

For 6 € 1.4 /pers. 275 kcal/100g

A delicious recipe similar to the Greek tirapita and that is still a delicious vegetarian recipe . I am passionate about crack cuisine, as I clearly reflect in my blog, and this recipe had to be present in Recetas de Rechupete, since it is one of those traditional recipes that when you go to Greece you have to try.

Spanakopita or Greek cake is tremendously popular as is the traditional Moussaka , or Youvarlakia . It is not surprising, since the crunchy filo dough and the spinach and feta cheese filling are irresistible.

They say it should be called spanakotiropita since the cake has feta cheese and is as famous as our own potato omelette . If you have never tried it, I recommend it, crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside due to this creamy filling. Write down all the ingredients to include them in your next shopping list now, easy and tasty, perfect for your weekly menu.

Preparation of the Greek spanakopita filling

1. We begin by preparing the filling in a large bowl. To do this, we drain the feta cheese well and crumble it with our hands or with the help of a fork. We add a pinch of freshly ground black pepper and some of the eggs (the other is for brushing before baking). We stir well until we obtain a homogeneous mass.
2. Peel the half onion and chop it into very small pieces. We do the same with the two cloves of garlic, we chop very finely (even if you have to make it puree, the better). We reserve.
3. We add a little extra virgin olive oil to a saucepan and brown the garlic and onion. As soon as we have everything poached, we add the fresh spinach and season with salt and pepper to taste. We stir for 2 minutes until they become soft and release some of their water. We take it out of the casserole and remove that excess liquid that we do not need. We can do it with a large strainer, they should be free of any liquid. We let them cool and reserve.
4. We put the raisins (seedless) in a glass of water and heat (quickly hydrate) in the microwave for one minute. If we don’t have a microphone, we can do it with hot water in a saucepan over the heat for 3-4 minutes. We drain very well, we want the raisins hydrated but without water.
5. Chop the walnuts into small pieces. We put together everything we have reserved in the bowl with the cheese and the egg, that is, the spinach with the garlic and onion, the raisins and the walnuts. We mix everything very well until we get a homogeneous mixture.

Shape and filling of Greek spanakopita

1. To assemble the spanakopita you have to work quickly and we cannot miss anything. Especially because, if the filo dough dries out (which happens quickly), it breaks and then doesn’t turn out well.
2. We prepare the table with everything essential: a wooden board, the filo dough covered with a slightly damp cloth, a sharp knife or a pizza cutter, a bowl with the extra virgin olive oil, the bowl with the spinach filling and cheese, a brush, a baking tray covered with parchment paper or a silicone mat and another damp cloth to cover the tray.
3. We unfold a sheet of filo dough on the wooden board and brush a sheet of dough with extra virgin olive oil. We place another sheet of dough or filo pastry on top and grease again. We place a part of the spinach filling on the longest end of the filo dough and wrap it in a cylinder shape.
4. We place it in the center of a round mold, rolled on itself. We prepare more cylinders of filo dough and roll them around until we cover the entire surface of the mold, forming a spiral as you see in the photo. We brush the surface of the spiral with the remaining egg.

Baking and final presentation of the Greek spanakopita

1. Don’t let the explanations scare you. Too easy. When we are finishing making the spiral, we preheat the oven to 190º C. We can optionally sprinkle with sesame seeds, they look great.
2. We place the tray in the oven at 190° C, with heat up and down, for approximately 25 minutes or until golden and crispy. It all depends on your oven.
3. Remove from the oven, plate and serve immediately. And to enjoy! It’s really delicious.

Tips for a delicious Greek spanakopita

• A perfect vegetarian snack to share with your loved ones, family or friends. A Greek salad or a simple tomato salad goes great as an accompaniment.
• Remember that we will need almost an hour to make it, about 55 minutes, 30 minutes of fairly simple preparation and then baking for 25-30 minutes, depending on your oven. But you’ll see the result, delicious.
• In case you are in a hurry, you can use frozen spinach. In that case we add them thawed and drained as is to the bowl with the rest of the ingredients. You will gain a few minutes.