Thea Liza’s Spanakopita

Thea Liza’s Spanakopita was her prize recipe!  But, it was her special touch we all loved about her. She owned a deli with her husband Mike in San Diego in the sixties, on C street around the corner from the old California Theater. People lined up for her food and specials during lunch hour. I did work there many weekends and during the summer. I remember taking the bus from La Mesa to downtown to help out. I guess those skills paid off when we started our  business years later.

The Balason Deli in downtown San Diego!

There are so many versions of this spinach pie in Greece. I could have my own web-site on this recipe alone. This spinach feta pie is eaten in all regions of Greece, and the ingredients change depending on what’s in the garden and what cheese is made in town. I’ll never forget going into a local cheese shop in Greece and seeing so many unique varieties of feta, that my head was spinning by the time I left with my selection. Every family member makes this recipe their own, this one is my aunt’s version.

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Thea Liza's Spanakopita

My aunt Liza was a great cook and we loved her version of this ever-so popular Greek dish. She welcomed everyone into her home and she leaves us one of her many delicious traditional Greek recipes.

Course Main Dish/Side Dish

Cuisine Greek

Keyword appetizer, dinner, main dish, spinach pie

Servings 12

Author Mary Papoulias-Platis

Ingredients

• 4-5 bunches of fresh spinach, washed, dried and chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 bunch of green onions, chopped
• 1 pound feta, crumbled
• 2-3 teaspoons of dried dill or 1/2 bunch fresh
• 4-5 large eggs, slightly beaten
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• salt and pepper
• 1 pound defrosted phyllo dough
• 1/2 cup melted butter

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a deep pot saute onions and scallions in olive oil until tender. Add spinach and cook until slightly wilted around 2 minutes. Drain spinach in a colander if too much liquid remains .Cool.

3. Place spinach mixture in a large bowl and add the feta, dill, eggs, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix gently but thoroughly.

4. Place 1/2 of the pound of phyllo in a 9x13 deep large casserole dish, buttering each layer.
5. Spread the spinach mixture on top.
6. Place the remaining phyllo sheets on top, buttering each layer.
7. Score the top layer only of phyllo sheets to desired pieces.
8. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes until golden brown on top.
9. Let cool for 30 minutes before serving.

 I serve this often for dinner so the pieces here are quite large. This is the nice thing about phyllo, cut them in the size you wish.

You may want to try my other phyllo recipes:

Pumpkin and Almond Pie

Greek Pastitsio

Greek Cheese Tiropetes

Enjoy these Dishes,

Mary 

© 2013 – 2022, Mary Papoulias-Platis. All rights reserved.

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Tagged as: feta, Greek Culture, olive oil, phyllo, spanakopita, spinach pie, Traditional Greek, vegetarian