SpanaNOpita: Greek Spinach and Feta Pie (minus the pastry)

Spanakopita, the Greek spinach and feta filo encased pie, has to be one of my favourite dishes. We eat it alone, with BBQ food, cold from the fridge or as part of Mediterranean feast.  However the crispy buttery filo pastry crust makes it more of an food indulgence and less easy to whip up in a few minutes (have you ever seen how easily filo breaks?) By taking away the pastry and butter, not only are you making this a much quicker and easier recipe, but it is also a lot healthier and lighter. Here I decrease fat by replacing cream with plain set yogurt, and increase the vitamin and protein content with more eggs, nuts and spinach. Ingredients – serves 2 for dinner or 3-4 for a light lunch 1 large white onion, finely chopped

200g raw spinach

1 tablespoon olive oil (I used garlic infused)

200g feta, crumbled

5 eggs, beaten

75g toasted pinenuts

2 tablespoons natural yogurt

Nutmeg for grating and black pepper for grinding.

Method Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C. In a small pan, sweat the onion in the oil over a medium heat, stirring to make sure it doesn’t catch, for 10 minutes or so, or until the onion is translucent and sweet. Then remove from the heat and set aside.

Meanwhile, pop the spinach in a large saucepan, over a low heat and toss until wilted.  Remove from the heat, and squeeze out as much water as possible, then chop finely.

In a mixing bowl, mix the eggs, yogurt, feta and 50g of the Pinenuts, adding the spinach and onion last.  Mix thoroughly and season with grated nutmeg and black pepper.

Pour the mixture into an oven proof dish, top with the remaining pinenuts and cook on the top shelf if the preheated oven for 25 minutes until it’s puffed up and golden. Delicious hot or cold.