Spanakopita

This year for Christmas dinner with Andrew's extended family we had a Greek theme. With Andrew's family all being wonderful cooks, it was probably one of the most delicious Christmas dinners I've ever had. We had everything from lamb and lemon chicken skewers with tzatziki sauce to lemon potatoes, Greek salad, mussels and pita's with humus. My task was to bring spanakopita. My friend from work gave me this recipe ages ago and I've used it a few times, tweaking it along the way.

What you'll need
2 - 454g Packages of frozen spinach, thawed and drained
1 cup Feta, crumbled
2 Eggs, separated PLUS one Egg (not separated)
1 Onion, finely chopped and lightly sauteed
3 tbsp Fresh chopped dill
1/8 tsp Nutmeg
1 lb Filo pastry
Salt and Pepper
1 cup Butter, melted

How to
1.  To make filling: Drain and squeeze excess water from the thawed spinach, place in bowl.

2.  Add feta, 2 egg yolks, onion, dill, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well.

3.  In a separate bowl, beat 2 egg whites until stiff and fold into spinach mixture.

4.  Lay one filo sheet onto a clean dry surface. Brush entire sheet with melted butter. Lay another sheet over top (don't worry if it crinkles and folds a bit, it doesn't have to look perfect). Brush that layer with butter. Repeat once more so you have three layers of filo, each brushed with butter. Cut the filo pastry in equal thirds lengthwise (you should now have three long strips of filo pastry).

5.  Spoon a tablespoon of the spinach mixture on an angle onto the bottom of one of the strips of pastry. Fold over the pastry at an angle to form a triangle. Then fold the triangle upwards to seal one of the open edges. Repeat this motion until you reach the top of the pastry strip. You should have a little bit of pastry left at the top. Brush this end with melted butter and then fold it upwards to seal your triangle. Repeat this process with the other two strips of pastry.

6.  Repeat step number five until you have used up all of your pastry and/or filling.

7.  Place your stuffed pastry triangles onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Preheat oven to 350°F.

8.  In a small bowl, beat remaining egg.  Brush lightly over your spanakopita triangles.

9.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until spanakopita it golden brown. Serve hot or at room temperature.