If you have not tried Spanakopita before, you’re in for a treat! Spanakopita is a delicious savory Greek pie made of perfectly crispy layers of phyllo dough and a comforting filling of spinach and feta cheese. I’m sharing my family’s favorite spanakopita recipe, complete with tips, video, and step-by-step photos. Trust me, this is so much easier to make than you think!
Spanakopita makes a great side dish for large holiday dinners next to lamb or lemon chicken. But it can easily stand alone as the main dish. Serve it with a big salad like Greek salad; Balela; or this Mediterranean chickpea salad, and favorite dips like Greek Tzatziki or Roasted Garlic Hummus.
This post is sponsored by The Fillo Factory.
What is Spanakopita?
My little one describes spanakopita this way, “yummy, crispy cheese pie with lots of green stuff!”
Spanakopita is a popular Greek savory pie made of perfectly flaky phyllo dough with a comforting filling of spinach and feta cheese nestled in. If you’re not familiar with phyllo dough, it is basically layered sheets of tissue-thin pastry dough, typically found in the freezer section next to things like pie crust and puff pastry.
Spanakopita can be made in a large casserole dish like in today’s recipe, or in the form of hand pies shaped in triangles or even rolls.
When I was at an Atlanta-area Greek festival a few weeks ago, my daughter’s lunch of choice was a piece of spanakopita and a side of Greek salad. Luckily, she allowed me a taste; it was heavenly! I ended up chatting with the woman behind the lavish lunch, her name was Yiayia Helen. We discussed family recipes and shared spanakopita lessons and tips…
Tips for How to Make Spanakopita
1. What is in the spanakopita filling?
The key filling ingredients in a classic spanakopita recipe are spinach and feta cheese. And yes, only use quality feta cheese, no other cheese qualifies for spanakopita.
To the spinach and feta, we add flavor makers in the form of fresh herbs and aromatics. I used two whole bunches of parsley (parsley stems pack a ton of flavor, by the way, so don’t be afraid to throw some in) Then, onions, garlic and a little dry dill weed.
To bind everything together, I used four large eggs.
2. Do I need to cook the spinach in advance?
You need a good amount of spinach in this recipe, so using frozen spinach is the way to go. In this easy spanakopita recipe, frozen spinach–fully thawed, of course–is mixed right in with the remaining filling ingredients, no advanced cooking necessary.
But one thing you must do, be sure to drain all liquid from the thawed spinach. I ended up squeezing the spinach by hand a few times until it could no longer produce any liquid. If you do use fresh spinach, you will need to cook it with the onions and garlic, drain, and let cool completely before mixing the filling.
3. The Phyllo
Golden, crispy phyllo pastry, encasing the soft spinach filling is really what spanakopita is all about! Quality of phyllo (fillo) dough can make or break the recipe! I am a big fan of organic dough from The Fillo Factory. It’s vegan and contains no preservatives; no cholesterol; and no trans fat. And be sure follow the tips below for best results.
Tips for working with Phyllo Dough:
– Thaw phyllo dough properly; too much moisture will make the dough or sheets sticky and hard to manage. When thawing, do not remove the phyllo (fillo) from the package, place it in the fridge 12-14 hours before using.
-Before you begin assembling the spanakopita casserole, unroll the thawed phyllo (fillo) sheets and place them carefully between two ever-so-slightly damp kitchen cloths. This helps the sheets remain lenient so they won’t tear too much.
-Do not skimp on the oil, but don’t overdo it either. Some use butter, but I use quality extra virgin olive oil here instead to keep it light. You need to brush each of the phyllo layers with a little olive oil (see the video as well)
-Remember, Phyllo (fillo) sheets will tear, and that’s perfectly fine. Just make sure you save a couple good sheets for the top of your spanakopita casserole.
Can I make Spanakopita Ahead of Time? What about Leftovers?
– You can make spanakopita the evening before you need to serve it. Follow the instructions for assembling, but do not bake. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight. When you are ready, go ahead and bake according to recipe instructions. Budget 1 hour for baking.
– Already cooked spanakopita will keep well if properly storied in the fridge for 2 to 3 evenings. Heat in medium-heated oven until warmed through. You can also portion cooked leftover spanakopita and freeze for a later time. Warm in oven; no need to thaw in advance.
Watch the video for How to Make Spanakopita:
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Spanakopita Recipe (Greek Spinach Pie)
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 12 pieces 1x
Description
Foolproof family recipe for Spanakopita! Delicious savory Greek pie made of perfectly crispy layers of phyllo dough and a comforting filling of spinach and feta cheese.
Ingredients
For the Spinach and Feta Filling
- 16 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well-drained
- 2 bunches flat-leaf parsley, stems trimmed, finely chopped
- 1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tbsp Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil
- 4 eggs
- 10.5 oz quality feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 tsp dried dill weed
- Freshly-ground black pepper
For the Crust
- 1 16 oz package The Fillo Factory Organic Dough (#4 pastry sheets), properly thawed (see tips above)
- 1 cup Private Reserve extra virgin olive oil, more if needed
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
- Before you begin mixing the filling, be sure the spinach is very well drained, and squeeze out any excess liquid by hand.
- To make the filling: In a mixing bowl, add the spinach and the remaining filling ingredients. Stir until all is well-combined.
- Unroll the phyllo (fillo) sheets and place them between two slightly damp kitchen cloths.
- Prepare a 9 1/2″ X 13″ baking dish like this one. Brush the bottom and sides of the dish with olive oil.
- To assemble the spanakopita: Line the baking dish with two sheets of phyllo (fillo) letting them cover the sides of the dish. Brush with olive oil. Add two more sheets in the same manner, and brush them with olive oil. Repeat until two-thirds of the phyllo (fillo) is used up.
- Now, evenly spread the spinach and feta filling over the phyllo (fillo) crust. Top with two more sheets, and brush with olive oil.
- Continue to layer the phyllo (fillo) sheets, two-at-a-time, brushing with olive oil, until you have used up all the sheets. Brush the very top layer with olive oil, and sprinkle with just a few drops of water.
- Fold the flaps or excess from the sides, you can crumble them a little. Brush the folded sides well with olive oil. Cut Spanakopita ONLY PART-WAY through into squares, or leave the cutting to later.
- Bake in the 325 degrees F heated-oven for 1 hour, or until the phyllo (fillo) crust is crisp and golden brown. Remove from the oven. Finish cutting into squares and serve. Enjoy!
Notes
- Tips for Working with Phyllo: As mentioned earlier in the post, remember that phyllo is paper thin and will break as you are working with it. For best results, place phyllo dough sheets in between two very slightly damp kitchen towels (step #4) before you start working with it (unless you think you will work fast enough that the phyllo will not dry out.) Also, be sure to brush each layer with oil; don’t skimp.
- Make Ahead Tips: You can make spanakopita the evening before. Follow up to step #9, cover and refrigerate. When you are ready, go ahead and bake according to step #10.
- Leftover Storing and Freezing Tips: Already cooked spanakopita will keep well if properly storied in the fridge for 2 to 3 evenings. Heat in medium-heated oven until warmed through. You can also portion cooked leftover spanakopita and freeze for a later time. Warm in oven; no need to thaw in advance.
- What to Serve with Spanakopita? Spanakopita makes a great side dish for large holiday dinners next to lamb or lemon chicken. But it can easily stand alone as the main dish. Serve it with a big salad like Greek salad; Balela; or this Mediterranean chickpea salad, and favorite dips like Greek Tzatziki or Roasted Garlic Hummus.
- Recommended for this Recipe: Private Reserve Greek extra virgin olive oil (from organically grown and processed Koroneiki olives).
- SAVE try our Greek olive oil bundle and our popular Ultimate Mediterranean Spice Bundle
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Entree or Side Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Greek
*This recipe and tutorial was originally published 11/08/2016. Last updated with new information and photos on 4/15/2019.
Forgot to add, in the ingredients list you say 4 sheets of filo pastry but you use about 8 in the instructions.?
Dianne, this recipe requires 1 16-ounce package of phyllo dough as listed in the ingredients. What is used is #4 pastry sheets as in the particular kind/size. If you click on the link in the ingredient list, you will see what is used here.
Delicious! I only used 2/3 of a package of fillo and was worried obout how much that might affect it, but no one noticed and it kept it’s shape just fine. I don’t think I’ve used a recipe before that included so much parsley but that worked out fine as well.
Wonderful, Elizabeth! Thank you for sharing!
Hello,
I have made this recipe a few times, but always wonder how much parley is in a bundle? 1 cup? 2 cups?
Thank you advance
~ Tamara
Thank you, Tamara! So a bunch of parsley usually contains something like 15 stems or so, and when chopped should give you between 1 1/2 to 2 cups chopped fresh parsley. This is of course a very general idea.
You say this can be frozen but I’m confused –
“Freezing Instructions: Already cooked spanakopita will freeze well. Be sure to have it well covered to avoid freezer burn. No need to thaw before baking.”
If it’s “already cooked”, you don’t need to bake after thawing? Do you mean freeze before cooking or freeze after cooking then thaw and re-heat?
Hi Dianne. If you freeze cooked spanakopita, you do not need thaw it out…to warm it up, simply bake it in the oven from frozen.
Can you make in filo mini cup , how long would you bake it for and do they freeze well.
You can make the filling to use in fillo cups. Bake in 350 degrees F heated oven for 12 minutes or so. You can freeze them and cook from frozenl do not thaw (I believe they can be frozen for 2 weeks up to 1 month in advance if well-sealed.)
I just made this recipe and it was delicious.
Thank you ?
Yay! So glad to hear it
I am about to diverge from my normal spani recipe to try this one…. Curious that you don’t sautee the onions first?
It’s just not necessary to do.
Hi Suzy … this recipe is always delicious … can you please let me know if I was having this as a main meal, how many serves would I have (I’ve noticed there are 12 serves in this recipe) … thanks ?
Hi Mary,
So this makes a large casserole of 12 pieces. The pieces are honestly big enough, so I would say 1 or maybe 2 pieces at most with a side salad should be sufficient for dinner.
Really easy to make and way more delicious than I anticipated!
Yay, thanks for trying, Anna!
I just made this dish for dinner. Super easy and super delicious! Family is going back for seconds!
Jackie, thank you! I’m so glad y’all enjoyed it.
There is no video on this webpage and I have looked 3 times.
If you scroll down just before the recipe, you should see the video under the header “Watch how to make spanakopita.” You may have disabled something in your own browser, which is why you may not be seeing the video.
Well I just made this but forgot to add the oil into the spinach mixture,but it turned out really good,being my first time making it,I guess I need to read through the recipe a few times to make sure what I have added ,but was pretty easy I would say as I never have worked with phylo dough before
Awesome, Val! Thanks so much for giving it a try!
Only once out of maybe 4 times I used your dough, did the dough stay in one whole piece. It’s more difficult using filo dough that is falling apart. Of course I followed the directions for use.
I would use 2x the spinach.
I found all the tips useful.
Thanks for sharing, Sidney!
Your recipe indicates the value of using fresh herbs. I am unclear, however, as to whether the dill weed is dried or fresh. I was hoping to be able to get the answer from watching the video. Though it looked to me like it was dried dill weed, I couldn’t be certain.
So…is it fresh or dried?
Hi, Marcey! The star fresh herb here is parsley, we use 2 big bunches of it as you saw. As far as the dill, 2 tsp of dried dill weed. Enjoy!
Meant to say “lint free” dish towel to squeeze the spinach !
1) I have been making this dish for ages, and always use frozen chopped spinach – just defrost it, or nuke till no longer frozen.
2) ALWAYS squeeze dry the defrosted chopped spinach in a long free dish towel or large sheet of cheese cloth. Break up the spinach and mix in all of the Feta, sauteed onion, garlic, S&P, and herbs well. THEN add beaten eggs.
3) ALWAYS chill the assembled pie, then score the top layers of buttered phyllo **before baking** Otherwise you will destroy that beautiful top layer. Just cut the rest of the way through after it is baked and allowed to stand for 5-10 min.
4) Use clarified butter -always. Keep milk solids for another recipe, or add them when scrambling eggs.
5) If you want to make for future use, follow the steps above, wrap well and freeze unbaked. You CAN bake without defrosting. Just add 10 min. or so to bake time.
Thank you for sharing, Diane! Glad you’ve been enjoying this dish. I will say that we use extra virgin olive oil and have loved it this way as well. Clarified butter I am sure also works for those who prefer.
I always use a dish towel as the final squeeze on the thawed spinach. And I like using Ghee as well although if you do not clarify it yourself it can be hard to find (although Trader Joe’s is/was selling it not long ago). I usually cut the phyllo in strips and triangle the filling but that is if I have the time and patience. Apart from the presentation either way it comes out tasting heavenly.
I love spinach pie. I did use puff pastry because that was in my freezer. Besides mint I chopped some mint in the filling. After brushing the top with an egg wash I sprinkled za’atar.
So good ?
Mary, that’s great! I hope you’ll try it with fillo dough next, so goood!