Athens · Attica · Greece
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Prep
35 min
Cook
45 min
Hands-on
55 min
Athens bakeries perfume sidewalks with buttered phyllo from Exarchia to Pangrati. Spanakopita—spinach, dill, and feta locked in shatteringly crisp layers—is breakfast on the go and mezze at dusk. The first crack of pastry gives way to a salty, herbal steam that tastes like hillside greens and lemon light.
Paper-thin phyllo sheets bake into a golden, flaky pie filled with wilted spinach, scallions, dill, and briny feta. The top shatters; the interior stays moist and tangy. A squeeze of lemon at the table wakes the herbs without drowning the cheese.
Athens, Greece
Athens spreads from the Acropolis to seaside suburbs under bright Attic light, with a café culture that snacks all day. Phyllo pies are a practical city food—portable, filling, and rooted in rural greens cookery. Dill, olive oil, and sheep’s milk cheese remain pantry constants. Locally it is known as spinach pie.
Spinach-and-cheese pies belong to a wider Byzantine and Ottoman phyllo tradition across the eastern Mediterranean. Rural Greek cooks wrapped wild greens when spinach was scarce; urban bakeries standardized the feta-dill profile. The rectangular pan pie and triangular hand pies both became Athenian staples in the twentieth century. Today spanakopita is a national comfort that still tastes most alive with fresh dill and proper phyllo shatter. Savory spinach pie is a pastry eaten throughout Greece, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Turkey. Of Greek origin, this pastry’s filling is made of chopped spinach and usually feta or white cheese, and egg.
Bakeries sell wedges by weight; tavernas serve square trays at lunch. Home cooks assemble pan pies for name days and picnic trips to the coast. At Varvakios Market, bundles of spinach and herbs hint at tonight’s filling.
Spanakopita satisfies with contrast—crisp pastry against soft, lemony greens and salty cheese. It travels well and tastes good warm or room temperature. One tray feeds a table without ceremony.
Athens-style spinach pie wraps dill-bright greens and salty feta in shatteringly crisp phyllo.
This video shows another cook’s version of the dish. Use the sourced written recipe for quantities and steps.
Video cuts off before showing how to assemble and bake the phyllo.
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egg
2 large
spinach
2 pounds
onion
1
green onion
5
garlic
6 cloves
parsley
¼ cup
salt
1 teaspoon
black pepper
½ teaspoon
feta cheese
8 ounces
butter
½ cup
phyllo dough
16 sheets
olive oil
2 tablespoons
dill
3 tablespoons
Each column is a kitchen lane. Times sit on the activity; striped blocks are hands-off waits.
Workstream
1 · cook
Sautè the spinach
2 · cook
Cook the aromatics
3 minutes
3 · prep
Combine the filling
4 · prep
Preheat the oven
5 · cook
Layer the phyllo
6 · cook
Assemble the spanakopita
7 · cook
Bake the spanakopita
50 minutes
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. In batches, sautè the spinach until wilted. (Add more oil if needed.) Place in a large sieve and let cool. Squeeze out excess liquid from the spinach until dry. Place in a large mixing bowl.
Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in the same skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, green onions, and garlic and cook until the onions start to softne, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the spinach, and let cool for 5 minutes.
Add the cheese, parsley, dill, eggs, salt, and pepper to the spinach mixture and stir to combine.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly brush a 9x13-inch baking pan with some of the melted butter.
Lay one sheet of phyllo dough in the prepared baking pan, letting the excess go up the sides of the pan. Using a pastry brush, brush the dough with melted butter. Repeat with 7 more sheets of phyllo dough and more melted butter.
Spread the spinach mixture evenly on top of the stacked phyllo. Lay one sheet of phyllo dough on top of the filling and brush with butter. Repeat with the remaining 7 sheets of phyllo dough and melted butter. Tuck the ends of the dough down around the edges creating a pretty border. Using a sharp knife, lightly score the top layer of phyllo into 12 squares.
Bake for 50 minutes or until golden brown and the filling is heated through. Serve warm. Leftovers can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.