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    Home » MAINS » VEGETARIAN

    Greek Spanakopita Spiral

    Published: February 2, 2021 · Updated: January 13, 2023 by Ieva · This post may contain affiliate links · 4 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    A lovely lighter vegetarian lunch or dinner that is packed full of spinach and feta! Creamy filling with the freshness of the mint and saltiness of feta won’t disappoint, and the crispy golden brown filo (phyllo) pastry will add the needed crunch! A traditional Greek Spanakopita Spiral is definitely a winner on our lunch table! Plus, doesn’t it look pretty!?

    Take Me To:
    • What is Spanakopita?
    • Different Shapes of Greek Spanakopita
    • Tips and Tricks for Working With Filo (Phyllo) Pastry
    • Method: How To Make a Spanakopita Spiral?
    • Storage And Reheating
    • What To Serve With Spanakopita?
    • Other Filo (Phyllo) Pastry Recipes
    • Recipe Card

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    What is Spanakopita?

    Spanakopita literally means ‘spinach pie’ in Greek. It is a traditional Greek savoury pie that has its origins in the Ottoman empire. Well, it certainly stood the test of time, as it is enjoyed all over the world these days too.

    Spinach and cream cheese (sometimes ricotta) and feta is such a classic combination that you simply can’t go wrong with it! To make this spiral spanakopita extra special, we added some nutmeg, lemon zest and a good amount of fresh mint too!

    If you love Greek food, why not also try Prawn Saganaki or Greek Quesadillas?

    A slice of spanakopita being cut from the spiral.

    Different Shapes of Greek Spanakopita

    Spanakopita comes in various different shapes and sizes! If you don’t fancy a spiral Spanakopita, choose a different shape you prefer:

    • Make individually-sized Spanakopita Triangles (shape them like samosas).
    • Make it into a pie: line the bottom and sides of an oven-proof dish with filo pastry sheets, brushing them with butter in between. Then add the filling and top with more filo pastry to create a pie top!
    • Make it into a round cake (same way as with a pie, but use a round springform cake tin!

    Tips and Tricks for Working With Filo (Phyllo) Pastry

    We buy ready-made filo sheets. In the UK, they can typically be found in the fridge isles, where you’d normally look for a puff or shortcrust pastry. They usually come in 200g packets and are cut into 12-16 sheets.

    • Make sure you take a packet of your filo pastry out of the fridge about 30 minutes before using it. But don’t open the packet. Filo pastry is best to work with, when it’s room temperature but hasn’t dried out.
    • Brush the top of the Spiral Spanakopita with melted butter or oil liberally before placing it in the oven! Fat will make sure your pastry crisps up and browns beautifully!
    • If your pastry is breaking whilst you are shaping it into a spiral, brush the tubes with butter or oil as you go to moisten the pastry and make it less brittle!

    Method: How To Make a Spanakopita Spiral?

    Preheat the oven to 200°C Fan. Wash your spinach and place it in a large colander. Boil a full kettle of water and slowly pour over the spinach, making sure all are getting blanched. Leave to cool down.

    Close up shot of spinach in a colander.
    Pouring hot water over te spinach in a large colander.

    Chop spring onions, brown onion, mint, garlic and dill. Then zest your lemon. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out all the moisture from your spinach with your hands. The more excess liquid you get rid of, the crispier the cooked filo will be. You should be left with a large handful of compacted spinach. Place it on a chopping board and chop it up roughly.

    copressed spinach with moisture squeezed out in a palm of a hand.

    Heat 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil in a pan. Add the chopped brown onion, spring onion and garlic and cook on medium heat for approx. 4 minutes until the onion is starting to soften.

    Add the spinach and cook for another minute. This step will dry your spinach further, ensuring crispy pastry. Then take off the heat and leave to cool down.

    In a separate large bowl, mix together cream cheese, an egg, a pinch of nutmeg, dill, mint, lemon zest and salt and pepper. Add the cooled spinach and mix to combine. Crumble the feta into chunks and mix carefully not to break it up too much.

    Ingredients for traditional spanakopita filling in a large metal bowl.
    Lemon zest being mixed into the creamy filling.
    Spanakopita Pie filling in a metal bowl.

    Lay your filo pastry sheets. Add a third of the spinach mixture to each sheet and spread along the longer edge of the pastry. Then roll it into a tube. Then roll the tube into a wheel. Repeat with the other two sheets, wrapping the tubes around the first wheel.

    Lightly brush the top of the wheel with olive oil, then sprinkle some nigella seeds on top.

    Spinach and feta filling on a sheet on filo pastry, ready to be rolled.
    Shaped spiral spanakopita.
    Spanakopita spiral on a baking tray lined with baking parchment.

    Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the top of the wheel turns golden brown. Enjoy this spinach and feta pie warm or at room temperature!

    Storage And Reheating

    This recipe served 2 people for lunch if paired with a side salad, but you can easily double or even triple the recipe. Note though, that large Spanakopita Spirals will take a little longer to cook through.

    If you have made more spiral Spanakopita than you can eat, store any leftovers in the fridge for up to 2 days.

    You can enjoy the pie cold the next day, or place it in the oven for 10 minutes at 180° C. Do not reheat your pie in a microwave: the filo pasty will become extremely soggy and unpleasant to eat.

    What To Serve With Spanakopita?

    If you are wondering what to eat with Greek Spanakopita we have a bunch of suggestions for you! We personally think a salad or two served with this traditional Spanakopita Spiral makes a wonderful lunch. Try it with:

    • Courgette Ribbon Salad with Honey and Tea Dressing
    • Quick Roasted Cherry Tomatoes
    • Persian Shirazi Salad

    Other Filo (Phyllo) Pastry Recipes

    If you cooked out Traditional Spanakopita, you may have lots of filo pastry left over. Try our other pies and tarts for dinner this week, including:

    • Sweet Potato & Kale Filo Tart
    • North African Spiced Chickpea & Feta Pie
    • Lamb Sambousek

    And if you fancy something sweet, why not try Pistachio and Almond Briouat?

    Recipe Card

    Traditional Spanakopita

    Traditional Spanakopita Spiral

    A lovely lighter vegetarian lunch or dinner that is packed full of spinach and feta! Creamy filling with the freshness of the mint and saltiness of feta won't disappoint, and the crispy golden brown filo pastry will add the needed crunch! A Traditional Spanakopita Spiral is definitely a winner on our lunch table!
    5 from 4 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 25 mins
    Cook Time 25 mins
    Total Time 50 mins
    Course Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
    Cuisine Greek
    Servings 2 portions
    Calories 411 kcal

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 250 g spinach
    • 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • 1 small brown onion finely chopped
    • 3 spring onions thinly sliced
    • 2 garlic cloves thinly sliced
    • 100 g cream cheese
    • 1 small egg
    • pinch of nutmeg
    • 1 tablespoon dill fresh or frozen
    • 10 g mint leaves only, roughly chopped
    • ½ lemon zest only
    • 100 g feta
    • 3 filo pastry sheets
    • 2 tablespoon olive oil for brushing
    • ½ teaspoon nigela seeds optional

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat the oven to 200°C. Wash your spinach and place it in a large colander. Boil a full kettle of water and slowly pour over the spinach, making sure all are getting blanched. Leave to cool down.
    • When cool enough to handle, squeeze out all the moisture with your hands. You should be left with a large handful of compacted spinach. Place on a chopping board and chop up roughly.
    • Heat 2 tablespoon of vegetable oil to a pan. Add brown onion, spring onion and garlic and cook on medium heat for 4 minutes.
    • Add the spinach and cook for another minute. Then take off the heat and leave to cool down.
    • In a separate large bowl, mix together cream cheese, an egg, a pinch of nutmeg, dill, mint, lemon zest and salt and pepper. Add the cooled spinach and mix to combine. Crumble the feta in chunks and mix carefully not to break it up too much.
    • Lay your filo pastry sheets. Add a third of the spinach mixture on each sheet and spread along the longer edge of the pastry. Then roll into a tube (see photos above).
    • Roll the tube into a wheel. Then repeat with the other two sheets, wrapping the tubes around the first wheel.
    • Lightly brush the top of the wheel with the olive oil, then sprinkle some nigella seeds on top.
    • Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until the top of the wheel turns golden brown.

    Notes

    For serving suggestions and different Spanakopita shapes, have a look for tips in the text above. 

    Nutrition

    Calories: 411kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 18gFat: 31gSaturated Fat: 18gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 177mgSodium: 865mgPotassium: 1034mgFiber: 5gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 13137IUVitamin C: 60mgCalcium: 482mgIron: 5mg
    Keyword Greek Recipes, Greek Spanakopita, Greek Spanakopita Recipe, Greek Spinach Pie, Spanakopita, Spanakopita Recipe, Spanakopita Recipe UK, Spanakopita Spiral, Spinach & Feta Filo Pie, Spinach & Feta Filo Wheel, Spinach & Feta Pie, Spinach & Feta Recipe UK, Spinach And Feta Phyllo Pie, Spinach and Feta Spanakopita, Spinach and Feta Wheel, Spinach Spanakopita, Spinach Spanakopita Recipe, Spinach Wheel, Spiral Spanakopita, The Best Vegetarian Pie, Traditional Spanakopita, Traditional Spanakopita Recipe, Vegetarian Greek Pie, Vegetarian Spinach Pie
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sarah James

      August 11, 2021 at 4:00 pm

      5 stars
      Your Spinach and Feta Spanakopita looks delicious. Thanks for the tips on cooking the spinach and dealing with the filo to get a crispy pastry. Looking forward to making this for a family lunch.

      Reply
      • Ieva

        August 11, 2021 at 7:12 pm

        Thanks, Sarah! Hope you like it as much as we do 🙂

        Reply
    2. Suja

      May 21, 2022 at 3:42 pm

      5 stars
      Outstanding recipe thanks so much! tasted so much good!

      Reply
      • Ieva

        May 21, 2022 at 8:13 pm

        Thanks, Suja! Glad you enjoyed it 🙂

        Reply

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    Hi, I am Ieva – the face behind this blog. I live in North Wales with my husband Seb and our golden retriever Sawyer. It’s safe to say that I live and breathe food: from researching and reading about food to creating new recipes and growing vegetables to use in my cooking.  The great thing is, Seb appreciates all the good meals that are also essential at his worst ‘hangry’ moments! Somebody HAS to feed Seb…

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