SPANAKOPITA PIE WITH SCRUNCHY FILO TOPPING
HERE filo pastry makes a flamboyant pie topping, as well as beautiful layers for the base of the pie, so it is a good way to perfect your technique for handling this delicate pastry.
Serves 6
Kit you’ll need
20cm (8in) round loose bottomed cake tin, 4cm (1½in) deep
Baking sheet
For the Spanakopita Pie
450g (1lb) fresh spinach
4 tbsp olive oil
8 spring onions, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 medium eggs
175g (6oz) ricotta
150g (5½oz) feta
3 rounded tbsp grated Parmesan
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh mint
2 tbsp finely chopped fresh dill
1⁄8 tsp ground nutmeg, plus extra for sprinkling
25g (1oz) butter
6 large sheets shop-bought filo pastry, each about 45 x 35cm (17 x 14in)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
Greek yoghurt with chopped mint
1 Preheat oven to 190c/170c fan/375f/gas 5 and put a baking sheet in the oven to heat up.
2 Put spinach in a large heatproof bowl. Pour boiling water over it and leave for 30 seconds only, pressing it down in the water with a wooden spoon so it wilts quickly. Drain spinach into a colander, place under running cold water to stop it cooking and cool it down quickly. Drain again and press firmly with the back of a wooden spoon against the sides of the colander to squeeze out as much of the water as you can. Squeeze with your hands to get rid of any lingering water and keep squeezing until no more is coming out. Pat the spinach dry on kitchen paper, then pile it on a board and slice through it to chop. Set aside.
3 Heat 1 tbsp of the olive oil in a frying pan, add the spring onions and chopped garlic and fry for about 2 minutes over a medium heat. Lower the heat and tip in the drained chopped spinach. Stir for 1 minute, no more, to finish cooking off the liquid. Remove and leave to cool.
4 Beat the eggs in a large bowl with a fork, beat in the ricotta, crumble in the feta, then mix in the Parmesan, chopped mint, dill and nutmeg. Season with pepper and a pinch of salt.
5 Melt the butter in a small pan, and stir in the remaining 3 tbsp of oil. Lay the 6 bought filo sheets on top of each other on a large board. Working with 1 filo sheet at a time, brush the top one with a little of the buttery oil. Brush some of the oil over the sides and base of the tin.
6 Now you need to line the 20cm (8in) round loosebottomed tin with four of the sheets. Lay the first filo sheet in the tin oiled side up, fitting it into the corners and letting the excess drape over the edge. Brush another sheet with oil and lay that on top of
the first one to make a cross. This is to make sure the tin is completely covered with pastry all round. If your filo sheets are a different size to the size given here, you may need to adjust how you layer them in, to ensure that the tin is well lined. Continue crisscrossing the filo sheets until the tin is completely lined with four layers of the pastry.
7 Stir the cooled spinach mixture into the cheese mixture but do not overmix. Spoon this filling into the tin and spread it out evenly.
8 Bring the overhanging pastry edges over the filling (trim a little off if there is too much) and brush them with the buttery oil.
9 The last two filo sheets will be the lid for the pie. Brush one with oil, scrunch it up into loose folds and lay it over the top so that it covers half of the filling and pastry edges. Do the same with the last sheet. The filling should be well covered. Sprinkle a little nutmeg over the filo folds.
10 Place the tin on the hot baking sheet and bake the pie for 30 minutes, or until the filo is golden and crisp. Let the pie sit in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove from the tin and serve warm or at room temperature with minted Greek yoghurt.