Spanikopita Arancini Recipes

SPANAKOPITA (GREEK SPINACH PIE)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly oil a 9x9 inch square baking pan.
• Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion, green onions and garlic, until soft and lightly browned. Stir in spinach and parsley, and continue to saute until spinach is limp, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
• In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, and feta. Stir in spinach mixture. Lay 1 sheet of phyllo dough in prepared baking pan, and brush lightly with olive oil. Lay another sheet of phyllo dough on top, brush with olive oil, and repeat process with two more sheets of phyllo. The sheets will overlap the pan. Spread spinach and cheese mixture into pan and fold overhanging dough over filling. Brush with oil, then layer remaining 4 sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each with oil. Tuck overhanging dough into pan to seal filling.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown. Cut into squares and serve while hot.

SPANAKOPITA

Steps:

• Prepare ingredients: Take the phyllo dough out of the freezer to allow it time to defrost. Using a clean kitchen towel, squeeze all excess moisture out of spinach. In a large skillet heat the olive oil on medium heat.
• Assemble the filling: In a large skillet heat the olive oil on medium heat. Add the onion and green onion and saute until soft. Add the spinach and and saute until the spinach is limp. Stir in the lemon juice, and remove off the heat. Let cool. If there is excess liquid, place the mixture in a colander and squeeze out the excess liquid.
• Finish the filling: Cool the spinach mixture completely. Beat the eggs with the feta and nutmeg in a medium size bowl. Add the cheese mixture to the spinach mixture and mix until it's all incorporated well together.
• Preheat the oven: To 350 F degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
• Prepare the dough: Unroll the phyllo dough and lay one sheet flat on your work surface. For the remaining phyllo dough, cover it with a damp towel, so it won't dry out. Brush the sheet with melted butter, then sprinkle with a bit of oregano. Add one more sheet and brush with melted butter and sprinkle with oregano.
• Fill the dough: Using a pizza cutter, cut the sheets lengthwise into 4 long pieces, about 2 inch strips. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling near 1 corner of the phyllo strip. Fold the end at an angle over the filling to form a triangle. Continue to fold the triangle along the strip until you reach the end, like folding a flag. Repeat this with the remaining phyllo and filling.
• Finish the spanakopita: Place your spanakopita triangles on your baking sheets and brush with butter, then sprinkle the Parmesan cheese over them if you wish. Bake them for 30 minutes until the triangles are golden brown and crisp. Let cool slightly before serving.

SPANAKOPITA

Steps:

• In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, scallions and garlic, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 5 minutes.
• In batches, stir in spinach until wilted, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Strain spinach mixture through a sieve, pressing out excess liquid to prevent a soggy crust. Transfer to a large bowl and cool for 5 minutes. Add eggs, feta, Parmesan and parsley and stir until combined.
• Heat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9-by-13-inch pan (2 inches deep) with butter. Lay one half sheet of phyllo dough in baking dish. Using a pastry brush, brush dough with butter. Repeat 7 more times to form crust. Spread spinach mixture evenly over crust. Brush one half sheet of phyllo dough with butter and lay on top of filling, butter side up. Repeat with remaining 7 sheets of dough. Using a serrated knife, lightly score top layer of dough into squares (this will make it easier to cut once baked). Bake until crust is lightly golden and filling is heated through, 50 to 60 minutes. Serve warm.

SPANAKOPITA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Place spinach in a steamer over 1 inch of boiling water, and cover. Cook until tender, about 2 to 6 minutes. Drain and press to remove all water. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until tender, but do not brown. Stir in cooked spinach and continue cooking until all moisture has evaporated. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
• In a large bowl combine feta cheese, Swiss cheese, Parmesan cheese, eggs, parsley and cinnamon. Stir in spinach and onion mixture.
• Brush the bottom of a 17x11 inch jelly roll pan with butter. Place 1 sheet of dough in the bottom of the pan; brush with butter. Continue to layer 13 more sheets of dough, brushing every other sheet with butter. Spread spinach and cheese mixture over dough. Continue layering with remaining dough, brushing every other sheet with butter. Tuck edges of dough under. Brush top sheet with butter and, using a sharp knife, score top layer into diamonds.
• Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes, or until golden brown.

SPANOKOPITA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Heat the olive oil in a saute pan and add the scallions. Cook for 5 minutes or until soft. Meanwhile, squeeze most of the water out of the spinach and place it in a bowl. Add the scallions, dill, eggs, feta, salt, and pepper and mix together.
• Keep the phyllo dough sheets covered with a damp kitchen towel. Unfold 1 sheet of the phyllo dough. Brush the sheet with melted butter and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Repeat the process by laying a second sheet of phyllo dough over the first sheet, brush it with melted butter and sprinkle with breadcrumbs until all 10 sheets have been used. Spoon 3/4 cup of the spinach mixture into a sausage shape along one edge of the phyllo dough. Roll it up. Brush the top with butter and score the roll into 1-inch rounds. Place it on an oiled baking sheet. Repeat until all the pastry and filling have been used.
• Place in the oven and bake for 12 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Serve warm.

SPANAKOPITA

Steps:

• Place oven rack in center of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F.
• Preheat a small pan over medium to medium high heat. Add oil and onion and saute 5 minutes. Place onion in a bowl. Add chopped dry, defrosted spinach and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Add feta to the bowl and combine it with spinach. Add beaten egg and sour cream to the bowl and combine with cheese, spinach and onion.
• On a large work surface, place 1 sheet of phyllo. Paint half of the sheet with a little melted butter, paying extra attention to your perimeter. Fold sheet in half. Pile 1/4 of your spinach mixture into a log shape working 2 inches from bottom and each side. Tuck bottom up and fold both sides in, then roll and wrap upwards until you reach the edge of the dough sheet. Each pastry will resemble an egg roll. Paint the seam and the ends of the roll with butter and set roll seam side down on a cookie sheet. Repeat and make 4 rolls. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly golden all over and serve.

ARANCINI BALLS

Steps:

• Heat the oil and butter in a saucepan until foamy. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and fry gently over a low heat for 15 mins, or until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another min. Stir in the rice and cook for a further min, then pour in the wine. Bring to the boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Pour in half the stock and simmer, stirring continuously, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add the remaining stock a ladleful at a time as the rice absorbs the liquid, stirring, until the rice is cooked through (this should take about 20-25 mins). Stir in the parmesan and lemon and season to taste. Spread the risotto out into a lipped tray and leave to cool to room temperature.
• Scoop the cooled risotto into 18 equal portions - they should be slightly larger than a golf ball. Flatten a risotto ball in your hand and put a piece of the mozzarella in the centre, then enclose the cheese in the rice and roll it into a ball. Repeat with the remaining risotto balls.
• Put the flour, eggs and breadcrumbs into three separate shallow bowls. Dip each prepared risotto ball into the flour, followed by the eggs and finally, the breadcrumbs. Transfer to a tray and set aside.
• Half-fill a large, heavy-based saucepan with vegetable oil and heat over medium-low until it reads 170C on a cooking thermometer or until a piece of bread turns golden brown in the oil within 45 seconds. Lower the risotto balls into the oil in batches and cook for 8-10 mins, or until golden brown and melted in the centre. Set aside on a tray lined with a clean kitchen towel.
• Eat the arancini warm, or serve with a basic tomato sauce for dipping.

SPANIKOPITA

Steps:

• Remove the green part of the green onions, and reserve.
• Using a good sized frying pan, in the olive oil, sweat (reminder not to use salt if later using myzithra cheese) the basil, oregano, garlic, and the chopped white part of the onions over medium low heat for a few minutes. If you are using dried parsley, add it to the sweat, otherwise do not add at this stage. (If you are substituting fresh herbs for dried, also do not add now.).
• When the onions are soft and starting to fall apart, add the spinach and any fresh herbs. Simmer for several minutes at the same heat. (The purpose of this is to add the flavor of the herbs and aromatics to the spinach.).
• Let that cool. This is very important. Commune with your family and/or friends, and forget about it for a while. Let the flavors meld, and accept that there's a reason for this. Preheating the oven to 375 depends on the oven, and how long the cooling process takes and how comfortable you are with your utility bills.
• Once the spinach mixture has reached at least a lukewarm temperature, in a mixing bowl, or if of limited means the same pan if it's large enough, add the feta, and get your hand(s) in there and start working the product. Depending on the liquid consistency, this is where this recipe becomes an art and a set of guidelines rather than a structured explanation. With your hand on the mixture, you're going to know whether it is feeling tacky or not. You want something like bread dough ready to bake, as far as tactile feel goes.
• You will need one egg for the inner part of the eventual product to "set" properly. Add that at this point in the process. That will give you a feel for how the rest of this will go. The reason you wanted it to cool was so that you could feel the temperature without burns, and to ensure that the egg did not cook in the spinach mixture.
• The strongly suggested myzithra should be added now. If that is not available, or outside of price range, then parmesan and romano should be added now. (It's a matter of preference, in the end, as the myzithra was the "WOW", but it's still an amazing dish without it.) What you want is at least a half cup combined. If the secondary cheeses (remember the feta was already added) do not drop the liquid consistency to "tacky", add more. If it is dry at this point, add another egg and add more cheese to get it to "tacky". What ingredients, dry or fresh, you used prior to this stage have an effect now.
• Once you reach that proper consistency, wash your hands, you don't need to touch it any more (potential cross contamination issues with the eggs), and oil a baking dish of similar proportions to the filo dough you purchased. I suggest butter, but do not use olive oil. Its smoking point is too low, and will often burn at 375°F.
• Lay out about half of the filo dough on the bottom of the oiled baking dish. Place the spinach mixture onto the lower layer of the filo dough. Make sure it reaches the edges. If there is some tearing, do not worry as long as the lower layers of the dough are still solid. This is normal, and will not comprise the final product. Lay the rest of the filo dough on top. Brush the top layer with the melted butter. This will assist in producing a crunchy top layer and help keep it from burning.
• Place in preheated 375F oven. Cook for 10-15 minutes, and check. Apply more butter if needed. Cook for a total of 20-25 minutes. You should be able to smell it and hear a solid almost frying sound when it is ready.

SPANAKOPITA

Steps:

• Trim the roots from the English spinach, or if using silverbeet, remove leaves from tough stems. Wash leaves and drain well. Coarsely shred the leaves and tender stalks of the spinach and set aside.
• Place the feta in a large bowl and coarsely mash with a fork. Add the ricotta, kefalograviera, eggs, breadcrumbs, nutmeg, pepper and oil. Mix with the fork to combine. Add the spinach and set aside while preparing the pastry case.
• Preheat oven to 180?C.=2 0Lightly grease a 20cm x 30cm x 5cm deep baking dish.
• Lay the filo out on a bench. Cover with a dry tea towel then a damp one to keep it from drying out. Line dish with a sheet of filo and butter the filo. Top with another sheet of filo and butter and continue until about half the sheets of filo are used.
• Using your hand or a large metal spoon, gently mix the spinach filling until thoroughly combined. Pour into the prepared pastry base and spread evenly. Top with remaining filo, buttering each sheet, ensuring the final sheet is well buttered. Trim any overhanging pastry and tuck in the sides.
• Use a sharp knife to mark pastry top into diamonds, allowing the knife to pierce the pastry once or twice to allow air to escape during baking. Sprinkle lightly with water and bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until well browned and set. Gently shake the pan and the spanakopita will slide easily when cooked. Cover with foil if over browning. Cool on rack for 15 minutes before cutting to serve.

SPANIKOPITA ARANCINI

Steps:

• Bring stock, wine, lemon juice, salt and rice to a boil over med-high heat. Cook according to package directions, stirring frequently. For this recipe, you want the rice to be very tender, with no real "bite" to it, but not mushy either. To achieve this, you may need to add additional stock. When rice is tender, taste and add salt and pepper to taste--keep in mind you will add feta later which will add some saltiness. Remove from heat and stir in dill and zest.
• In a skillet over medium heat, saute sweet and green onions in oil until translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Stir into rice along with spinach and feta (add as much or as little as you like). Taste and adjust seasoning. You may want to add more lemon juice, dill or salt and pepper. Allow to cool to roughly room temperature Add 2 beaten eggs and heavy cream. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
• Roll rice mixture into 1 inch balls. Dredge in flour, then in eggwash made from 1 egg and 2 T milk, then in breadcrumbs.
• Deep fry in hot oil until golden. Drain on paper towels and enjoy! Really good with tzatziki sauce.