Spanakopita with Nettles & Spinach
Spanakopita can also be made in individual ‘snails’, but this delicious flaky version comes in a sauté pan. This version is good for a feast as it serves 12-15 people. You can halve the recipe if you’re serving smaller numbers.
SERVES
15
PEOPLE
PREP TIME
15
MINUTES
COOKING TIME
60
MINUTES
Ingredients
150g butter
900g leeks, sliced and washed really well
6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
500g onions, finely chopped
8 spring onions (both white and green parts), finely sliced
450g nettles, washed and blanched
450g fresh spinach, weighed after the stalks have been removed, washed really well
6 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
6 tbsp chopped dill
350g feta cheese, crumbled
125g Parmesan cheese, grated
4 organic, free-range eggs, beaten
9 sheets of filo pastry, 30 x 43cm (about one packet)
15g melted butter, for brushing
Egg wash, made by beating 1 organic, free-range egg with 2-3 tablespoons whole milk
Flaky sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and nutmeg
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.
Melt the butter in a 26cm ovenproof sauté pan and cook the sliced leeks with two to three tablespoons of water for four to five minutes until tender (older leeks may take slightly longer).
Scoop the leeks out of the pan and set aside on a plate while you cook the spinach and blanch the nettles in boiling salted water for 3-4 minutes.
Heat the olive oil in the sauté pan, add the onions and spring onions, and sweat over a low heat for three to four minutes, covered, until soft but not coloured.
Increase the heat to medium, add the blanched nettles and the spinach and toss well to coat it in the oil. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
Add the chopped parsley and dill, and continue to cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring, until the greens have wilted. Turn out the spinach mixture into a colander and set aside to drain and cool.
Combine the crumbled feta and 100g of the grated Parmesan in a medium bowl and beat in the egg. Add the nettles, well-drained spinach, the leeks and season to taste.
Brushing each sheet of filo with melted butter as you go, layer up the pastry in the base of the sauté pan or roasting dish so that it comes up the sides, leaving enough pastry hanging over the sides to fold over and encase the filling.
Spread the filling evenly over the pastry and bring up the sides of the filo to enclose the filling. Score the top of the pie into a diamond or square pattern and brush all over with the egg wash. Sprinkle the surface with the remaining 25g grated Parmesan.
Put the sauté pan onto a gas jet at medium, cook for three to four minutes or until the pan heats and the base starts to brown.
Transfer to the oven and bake for about 45 minutes until puffed up and golden.
Serve, cut into wedges, while still warm and fluffy.
