KALE & SPINACH SPANAKOPITAS

PREP TIME 30 MINS | COOK TIME 1 HOUR | MAKES 6

INGREDIENTS

1.5kg silver beet (Swiss chard) 350g green curly kale 400g Greek feta, crumbled 10 green onions, finely chopped ½ cup finely chopped fresh dill ¾ cup finely chopped parsley 2 tsp finely grated lemon rind 4 tbsp lemon juice 3 eggs, lightly beaten 80g butter, melted 2x375g packets fresh filo pastry 2 tsp sesame seeds Lemon wedges, to serve

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180°C. Trim 4cm off the stalk ends of the silver beet and kale; discard. Rinse greens, leaving some water clinging. Tear kale leaves from the centre stem. Cut white stalk from silver beet leaves, cutting into the leaf in a V-shape. Finely chop stems and leaves from greens, keeping them separate. Heat a large heavy-based saucepan over high heat; cook stems, stirring occasionally, for 10 mins or until soft. Drain well; transfer to a bowl. Add chopped leaves to pan; cook until wilted, about 2 mins. Drain well; add to bowl with stems. When cool enough to handle, squeeze excess water from greens mixture (this prevents pies from becoming soggy). Combine greens, feta, green onions, herbs, rind, juice, eggs in a bowl; season with pepper. Butter six 7¼’’ round, 1¼” deep, 500ml pie dishes. Butter half a sheet of pastry, fold in half to make a smaller rectangle; butter top. Place in dish, allowing pastry to overhang the edge. Keep remaining sheets covered with baking paper topped with a damp tea towel to prevent them from drying out. Repeat with two more sheets of pastry, stacking them in the dish. You will now have six layers. Place a sixth of the filling into the dish. Brush half a sheet of pastry with butter, fold in half crossways, brush with butter, fold in half again; trim to fit the top of the pie. Place over filling, then fold in and scrunch the overhanging pastry. Brush top of pie with a little more butter. Sprinkle with sesame seeds. Repeat to make 6 pies. Sprinkle a little water over each pie to prevent burning. Bake until golden, 35 mins. Serve with lemon.