Vegan Spinach Pie (Spanakopita)
Credit: Angel from Food Dystopia
Credit: Angel from Food Dystopia
Ingredients
64 oz. of fresh spinach, washed, with large stems removed
16 oz. package of vegan Filo sheets
1 medium onion finely chopped
¾ cup vegan feta (You can find this recipe here)
½ cup aquafaba (Replaces 3 eggs)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil to sauté onions and spinach
2 oz. melted Earth Balance Soy Free Buttery Spread or your favorite butter replacement
1 oz. extra virgin olive oil to combine with melted Earth Balance for brushing Filo sheets
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon powdered garlic
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Follow instructions on filo dough for defrosting, if frozen, or bringing it to room temperature, if refrigerated. You can leave it overnight in the refrigerator to defrost from the freezer and then two hours on the counter unopened to bring it to room temperature right before using.
Pre-heat the oven to 425℉.
Gently sauté onions in 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of olive oil to the pan and sauté spinach leaves until well cooked. This is a lot of spinach so fill the pan, let the leaves cook down, then continue adding leaves until all the spinach is cooked.
Drain and place spinach and onions in a large bowl to completely cool.
Add oregano, garlic, ginger, salt, pepper, vegan feta, and aquafaba to cooled spinach and onions. Stir until all ingredients are well combined.
Melt Earth Balance Buttery Spread or vegan butter of your choice and combine with olive oil.
Open the Filo package and place a damp dishcloth on the top to keep it from drying out. If your cloth is too wet your filo dough will get sticky, so wring the cloth out well. 12x17 inch Filo sheets are recommended and cut them in half so they are easier to handle.
Brush a 9x13 inch baking dish with the buttery spread/olive oil and begin laying down filo, one sheet at a time.
Cover the bottom of the pan with 6-8 sheets, being sure to brush each sheet, especially the edges. To reinforce the edges of the pie, add 2-3 layers of sheets that hang halfway over the sides of the pan. Do this for all sides.
Add the spinach mixture and spread evenly.
Take each sheet hanging over the edge of the pan and fold it over the spinach. Be careful to separate each one so they all get brushed with oil.
After you have folded in all the overhanging sheets, place 6 - 8 more sheets on top of the pie. Again, be sure to brush each sheet well.
Place in the 425℉ oven for 30-40 minutes. Times vary depending on your oven start to check it at around the 20-minute mark and then every 10 minutes after so as not to burn the Filo. Pie is done when Filo is a deep golden-brown color.
Let it sit for 15 minutes before serving. Enjoy!
Special Notes
Aquafaba is the juice of a can of chickpeas
Using fresh spinach is optimal but extra work so feel free to replace the fresh spinach with 16-24 oz. of frozen spinach. If you use the frozen, realize it is already cooked, so you can skip sautéing and sauté the onions. Just be sure to drain it well. Frozen spinach has a ton of liquid.
Filo dough is tricky. Don’t fret if your Filo sheets get torn and messy. Spinach pie is great even when it is a bit on the disheveled side. It might make it taste better. Have fun with it.
Finally, feel free to alter for health or taste preferences so you can add, subtract, or substitute any ingredients.
Compassionate Fun Fact!
Speaking of "greens" Paulie Walnuts loves a fresh salad!
Paulie Walnuts enjoying his freshly made salad!
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to make this