Spanakopita puff pastry tart
A spinach and feta puff pastry tart inspired by the veggie classic, spanakopita
This was a recipe I cobbled together for a family gathering over Easter. It was really simple to prepare and makes a great vegetarian main.
A spinach and feta mix with nutmeg and lemon zest tops ready rolled puff pastry, and if you like, add some asparagus too for a seasonal flair (to be truthful, I had some I needed to use up, but it worked very well).
If you don’t have asparagus or pine nuts, don’t worry, it will be delicious none the less.
This is really easy and really tasty. I used frozen spinach but you could use fresh - either wilt it with hot water then squeeze once it’s cool enough.
You’ll need (serves 8-10):
500g frozen spinach, defrosted
200g feta cheese
Zest of half a lemon
Grating of nutmeg
1 egg
320g ready rolled puff pastry
8 asparagus spears, ends trimmed off
50g cheddar cheese, grated
Toasted pine nuts
Extra virgin olive oil
Pre-heat your oven to 190C.
If it’s not already, defrost the spinach in the microwave. Squeeze out as much excess water as you can - you want about 250g squeezed weight for this.
Put the squeezed spinach into a mixing bowl. Crumble in the feta. Add the lemon zest and grate in some nutmeg.
Crack in the egg, season well with salt and pepper and mix well.
Unroll the pastry and lay it flat on a large roasting tin on baking parchment (I use the paper it was wrapped up in).
Score a border around the edge of the pastry with a knife, about 2-3cm in from the edge.
Spoon the spinach mixture evenly onto the pastry, leaving the border clear.
Add the asparagus spears and the grated cheese.
Optional, but if you want the pastry border to have a nice glaze to it, brush it with egg or milk with a pastry brush.
Bake for around 30 minutes, until the pastry border is golden and the cheese melted and bubbling.
Top with the toasted pine nuts (I toasted them in a dry frying pan, alternatively you could add them to the tart when it’s got 5-10 minutes cooking time remaining).
Finish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.