My summer vacations spent in Greece began with my grandmother’s “spanakopita,” the fragrant dill-infused spinach/spring onion filling laced with Greek olive oil and feta cheese that tempted and oozed through flaky golden filo dough. After flying for 30 hours from Japan, my brother and I would run up the marble staircase of my grandparents home passed the fragrant globe basil, and land safely in Yiayia’s pillowy arms. We would then promptly devour this coveted savory pie. I now make it with any leafy green vegetable growing in my garden. To take it over the top, I added pancetta and to make it fluffy, I add Japanese rice and bake it in a spring form release pan, so it looks like a cake.
Ingredients
2 lbs fresh kale, stems removed and copped roughly
1-cup olive oil
1 onion diced
1 cup cubed pancetta
2 bunches fresh dill, finely chopped
½ cup Japanese rice, washed
¼ cup sake
1 ½ cup hot chicken broth
2 eggs
1 ½ cup crumble feta cheese
1 package thawed filo dough
Freshly grated nutmeg
Directions
Filling
Set oven to 350 degrees F.
Heat oil in a large skillet or pot. Add pancetta and cook for 10 minutes. Add onions and cook for another 10 minutes. Add the kale, sauté for 10 minutes until wilted. Deglaze pan with sake. Add rice, cooking for another 10 minutes, adding hot broth until it is absorbed but not fully cooked. Mixture should not be too runny. Add nutmeg, dill and feta cheese. Adjust the seasoning first and add the whisked eggs. Allow to cool. Assemble the spring form pan, spraying with nonstick oil.
Remove filo dough from refrigerator. Drape 1 sheet of filo over the spring form pan, lining it with the filo by pressing into the pan. Spray with olive oil and continue layering the filo dough, turning the pan to ensure it is completely covered with the filo. Use 9 sheets of filo, spraying oil in between. Empty the filling into the filo lined pan, pressing the filling into the pan to ensure all of the edges and corners are evenly filled. Fold over excess filo over the filling. Cover the pan with a sheet of filo. Overlap 6 more sheets of filo on top, spraying with olive oil between each sheet. Cut the excess filo dough 2” larger than the pan and tuck in the filo into the edges of the pan. Spray with olive oil on top before placing in a preheated 350 F oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown.
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