Spanakopita

I have had the strangest craving for spanakopita all last week but I knew it would be a rather labor intensive process to make so I decided to hold off until the weekend. My good friend and coworker, Pam, was having a ParKty (party in the park) on Saturday afternoon and that seemed like a great opportunity to try and make a lot of spanakopita. I made two large batches of the spanakopita and it was definitely ten times easier the second time around! When working with phyllo dough, you have to work fast in order to prevent the sheets from becoming dry and brittle. Make sure to set up your kitchen space so you won't be wasting time moving things or rearranging items. The spanakopita is best when dipped in marinara sauce or tzadiki sauce. Enjoy!

Spanakopita

(Makes 72 pieces)

Ingredients:

2 lbs frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1/2 white onion, chopped

5 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup fake eggs

12 ounces crumbled feta

1 tablespoon coridander seeds

1 tablespoon nutmeg

2 tablespoons oregano

1/2 lb unsalted butter, melted

2 lb phyllo sheets

Grated parmesan

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Coat baking sheets with olive oil.

2. In a skillet over medium high heat saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil for about 3 minutes. Add the thawed spinach and mix gently to incorporate onion and garlic. Drizzle lemon juice over spinach mixture.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together the fake eggs and feta. When spinach mixture has cooled, add it to the bowl with feta and add in the coriander, nutmeg and oregano. Mix to until all the ingredients are combined.

4. Unroll phyllo sheets and damped a dish cloth with cold water and squeeze to drain. Working quickly and using one sheet at a time, make sure to keep the damp cloth covering the other sheets to keep them from drying. Lay one sheet on a flat surface and brush with melted butter. Place another sheet on top and brush with butter. Place a third sheet on top and using a sharp knife, cut the phyllo stack into 6 vertical strips.

5. Place one tablespoon of the spinach and feta mixture on one corner of the phyllo strip. Fold over one corner to make a triangle shape and working down the strip fold the triangle pocket over itself. Place triangles on the baking sheets and brush lightly with butter. (Sprinkle some grated parmesan on top for some extra deliciousness!)

                     

6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the spanakopita are golden brown on top.