Traditionally, this dish is referred to as Spanakopita, but since I can't even begin to pronounce that word I will tell you that it's basically just a mix of a lot of spinach, some eggs, herbs, and a generous amount of feta cheese.
Ingredients
- 16 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
- 3 large eggs
- 10 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup fresh basil, chopped
- 1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh oregano, chopped
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 clove garlic, minced or grated
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 pinch kosher salt and black pepper
- 12-18 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
- 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
Instructions
- In a large pan, cook the sausage, peppers and onions together until the sausage is done. Let cool slightly. Stir together sausage mixture, green onions and 2 cups of cheese in a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, combine the spinach, eggs, olive oil, feta, parmesan, basil, dill, oregano, lemon zest, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, and a pinch each of salt and pepper
- Place 1 sheet of phyllo dough on the prepared baking sheet and brush the phyllo with melted butter. Repeat, layering 2 more times, placing the sheets of dough over top each other. Now brush another sheet of dough with butter and place perpendicular to the bottom layer, creating an X. Repeat this layer 2 more times. Brush another sheet of dough with butter and place slightly off center of the x. Repeat this layer 2 more times. Simplistically, you are using 9 sheets of phyllo dough, 3 layers, in 3 different directions, kind of like a star.
- Take the spinach filling and spoon it onto the center of your phyllo dough star, leaving about 2 inches of edge space. Bring the edges of the dough up and over the spinach.
- Brush the remaining 3 sheet of phyllo dough with butter and layer over top of the spinach, crinkling them slightly to fit. Sprinkle the sesame seeds over the dough.
- Transfer to the oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, until phyllo is golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.
