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Five items: Easy as (spinach) pie
By Ann | January 31, 2008
Why do people say “easy as pie”? In my experience, pie is not easy to make. In fact, I can think of few things more finicky than pastry.
Unless, perhaps, the expression refers to Greek spinach pie, or spanakopita? (It seems improbable, but maybe?) When you use frozen fillo dough and frozen spinach, spanakopita is a snap to throw together — I can whip one up in just over 10 minutes — making this pie very easy indeed. Advance preparation is key here — the fillo dough needs to be thoroughly defrosted (the box says two hours in the fridge, but I just leave it on the counter) as does the spinach.
Here are the five items (except, there are six):
- 2 lbs frozen chopped spinach (usually two boxes or bags), defrosted
- 4 eggs (or 6 egg whites)
- 3/4 cup cottage cheese
- 1/2 lb feta cheese crumbled
- Fillo dough, defrosted (fround in frozen food aisle)
- cooking spray (I know, free radicals), olive oil, or 1/2 cup melted butter
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze the liquid out of the spinach, with all your might. Place the spinach in a mixing bowl and add the eggs (or egg whites), cottage and feta cheeses. Mix well to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Fillo dough dries out and becomes fatally brittle very quickly, so make sure your 9-inch springform pan is ready before you open the package. Also have your cooking spray/olive oil/butter at the ready. Carefully peel away one or two layers of fillo dough and place gently into your pan, allowing an edge (about 4-5 inches) to drape over the side of the pan. Because the fillo dough sheets are in a large rectangle and the pan is round, you will not have excess draping dough around the entire circumference of the pan — no matter. Spray the dough, or brush with oil/butter and add another sheet or two of fillo dough, so that the excess drapes over the opposite side of the pie pan (Is this making any sense?). Spray/brush and repeat two or three times.
Place the spinach mixture into the springform pan, pushing it to the edges and making sure it is level. Fold the fillo dough over on top of the spinach filling, so that it is completely covered. Drizzle with olive oil and bake at 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes until your pie is crisp and golden brown. Serve hot.
Topics: Five items |
4 Responses to “Five items: Easy as (spinach) pie”
Comments
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January 31st, 2008 at 1:58 pm
Beautiful, Ann! I sometimes make the Barefoot Contessa spinach pie at holidays and brunches, and it’s always a hit. Ina Garten serves spinach pie at room temperature, but I agree with YOU– it’s better hot!
January 31st, 2008 at 5:09 pm
Mmmm, I’ll have to try this recipe. I make little spinach triangles with a similar recipe, so I know I’ll love the pie!
February 1st, 2008 at 12:35 am
Sounds easy as pie! We’re having it tomorrow. Too bad there’s no such thing as non-fat, low salt feta.
February 1st, 2008 at 3:13 pm
In this case, “easy as pie” means the ease with which the diner consumes piece after piece of the pie. What a treat! By the way, do you think the name spanakopita breaks down as spanako (spinach?) pita (bread or crust?)? In any case, it’s all very Greek Chic.