Spanakopita I

Spanakopita 1

1 pkg phyllo dough
1 cup olive oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 (10 oz) pkg frozen spinach, thawed
2 cups cooked lentils
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 lb soft tofu, crumbled
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp dried dill

Set the phyllo dough out at room temp. while you prepare the other ingredients. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a skillet over medium-low heat, add the onion and garlic and sauté for 5 minutes. Stir in the spinach, lentils, lemon juice, tofu, salt, and dill, and remove from the heat. Drain any excess liquid before proceeding.

Use a pastry brush to spread a layer of olive oil on the bottom of a 11x17 inch baking pans, or use an oil spray (I have a nifty little gadget that I can pour oil in, pump it, and it turns the oil into a mist. Awesome!). Spread a sheet of the phyllo on the pan, brush it with oil, and repeat with 11 more sheets. If some rip, it will be fine. They are baking together!

Spread the filling as evenly and gently as possible over the phyllo, then layer the remaining phyllo over the filling, oiling each one as before. Score the top layer into thirds lengthwise and into fourths crosswise to make 12 rectangles, cutting down just to the filling. Bake for about 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Cut all the way through and serve.

To make this into a casserole style dish: Spray a 9x11 pan. When you roll the phyllo out flat, cut it in half so you have two smaller rectangles, and follow the same as above. Or, you could just use the full sheets, and fold them in half as you layer them…if that makes sense. Then you’d use half as many sheets, and have some for other things later...fruit pies, maybe?