Just in time for party season, I am sharing a recipe and a video (see below) for a popular and delicious hors d’oeuvre, mini spanakopitas. These are terrific whether in a casserole form (that recipe is here) or as a hand-held pie. You can make dozens today and freeze them for a future party. Once you get the idea of how to work with phyllo dough, you can change the recipe and do all sorts of fun and exciting things with it.
I am going to be upfront and tell you that this is not one of my cleanest recipes. But since I fully expect that you will not consume all 60 pies yourself, I don’t think a little dairy will be a big deal unless of course, you can’t have dairy. In which case, this is not your day. Kind of tough to make spanakopita without butter, feta and cottage cheese. I have plenty of healthified recipes coming down the pike, so fret not. Now go watch the video below!
Mini Spanakopita Pies
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, divided
- 1 bunch scallions or 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 bunch fresh dill, chopped (do not use dried)
- 3 large eggs
- 2 pounds frozen chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed with a thin kitchen towel or nut milk bag to remove excess water
- 1 pound goat or sheep milk feta cheese, crumbled
- 2 cups cottage cheese
- a handful of grated Pecorino or Parmesan cheese
- 1 package phyllo dough*, thawed overnight in the refrigerator
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Melt 6 Tablespoons butter in a sauté pan and add scallions and dill. Saute until onions are tender.
- Beat the eggs in a large bowl. Add the spinach, sautéed scallions and dill, feta, cottage cheese and grated cheese. Combine well.
- Melt remaining butter.
- Unroll the phyllo dough and, working quickly, spread out on the counter. Take one sheet and place on a cutting board. Brush liberally all over with melted butter. Place another sheet on top and brush with melted butter. Cover the rest of the phyllo with a towel to prevent from drying out.
- Cut the buttered phyllo into 3-inch wide strips. You’ll probably cut 6 strips.
- Place a tablespoon of the spinach mixture at the base of one of the phyllo strips, leaving a little border on the bottom. Fold up like a flag: Take the bottom right corner and across to the left on a diagonal. Then take the bottom left corner and fold straight up. Now take the bottom left corner and fold across to the right. Take the bottom right corner and fold straight up to the right. Keep going until completely folded into a triangle.
- Place on a parchment lined baking sheet, brush top with melted butter, and repeat with remaining phyllo dough and filling. Bake until puffed and golden, about 20-25 minutes.
Notes
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
Really a great recipe Pamela (as always)!
Love your cookbooks and your digital content.
These are so fun! Glad you enjoyed the recipe.
Hi Pamela – I am excited to finally make these….I plan to make in advance and freeze them. Would you brush the tops with the butter and then freeze or wait to brush them right before you bake.
I brush the top with egg yolk, not butter. But you could do either. I have frozen it both ways.
Hi Pamela, Happy Holidays! Would you recommend freezing before or after baking? And would you thaw before baking or bake from frozen? Same temp? Any advice appreciated. Thank you!
Hi Allison, Happy holidays to you too! I recommend freezing the pies prior to baking. Bake them frozen and add a couple extra minutes to the bake time. Same temp!
Can I prepare this the night before, keep it in the fridge overnight and bake it the next day?
Probably, but I haven’t kept them more than a few hours in the fridge, unbaked. I think it would work, BUT you must cover those pies really well with plastic wrap. If they dry out, they’ll be super brittle. Hope that helps.
Again, you posted a video for something that I never would have had the courage to try to make from the recipe, yet watching you make it, made it look easy! Definitely making this for my holiday party. Thank you for helping me expand our family’s food repertoire.
Thanks, Susan! That’s exactly why I posted a video for this. They’re really fun to make (if you’re not in a rush 😉 ). Let me know how they turn out!
I recently bought some phyllo dough for this exact reason! I am going to try a veganizing this with some tofu feta and vegan grated Parmesan. Can I do it without the egg and cottage cheese or will it lose texture and flavor? I can replace with the VeganEgg by Follow Your Heart but would rather omit if you think the recipe would hold without it.
Hmmmm, good ideas there. I would taste the vegan feta and see how salty it is and if you need to cut it with something, I would try blending in some Kite Hill vegan ricotta. No idea if the recipe will work without an egg substitute. Is the vegan feta watery at all? If so, I would ttry to add something to bind it.