My Favorite Spanakopita Recipe

As the Christmas season is upon us I’m being pulled to make my favourite appetizers. At the top of the list is my Spanakopita recipe which I want to share with you all here. This is definitely not the skinniest recipe but you could tone it down using fat free cheeses if you like.

Begin by cooking your spinach. I heated some butter in a pan at medium heat, added in baby spinach leaves and covered for 5 minutes.

I then drained the spinach and used my food processor to chop down the spinach. If you don’t have fresh spinach feel free to use a frozen package.

Next I put garlic into the pan and browned it, then added the spinach back in and warmed. Depending on the guests tastes I also use onion, black pepper and mushrooms.

In a mixing bowl I put 2 packages of cream cheese and 400 grams of Feta and blended them together. Once blended add in the spinach and garlic mixture and combine by stirring.

Now comes the fun part, working with phyllo pastry! This is a tricky thing to work with, it will dry up if left in the air too long so you must move quickly. First lay out your pastry flat and dampen a tea towel. Place the dampened tea towel over the pile of phyllo pastry each time you remove a piece. Remember to be gentle when touching the phyllo, it’s delicate.

Next you’ll need a large workspace, I use a large wooden cutting board. Lay one piece of phyllo pastry flat on the board and spread melted butter over it using a pastry brush. Once fully moistened lay another piece of phyllo pastry on top.

Then cut the pastry into strips approximately 2 inches wide. You can how I’ve cut mine in the photos below.

Place a scoop of the filling and place it at the end of one phyllo row.

Next take a corner of the phyllo row and bring it to the flat side, creating a triangle shape. Take the point of the triangle closest to you and fold it over to the other flat side. Repeat this until you are left with a triangular pastry.

Brush melted butter over the entire surface and gently smooth any pieces down.

Continue this process until you are out of either filling or phyllo pastry. Line your triangular pastries on a baking sheet and place into the over at 400 degrees for approximately 20 minutes or until browned. And VOILA you have the most gorgeous Spanakopitas!