Greek Spinach Pie in Potato Crust

Name: Greek Spinach Pie with Potato Crust
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Cuisine: Greek
Ingredients: 4-6 tablespoons olive oil, divided; 2 pounds russet potatoes. (Choose 4 or 5 large, oblong potatoes so you get lots of rounds when you slice them crosswise and so the circumference of the rounds is less than the height of the sides of your skillet.; 2 tablespoons unsalted butter; 2 medium yellow onions, peeled and diced; 2 large garlic cloves, minced (1 tablespoon); 2 pounds of fresh spinach leaves and tender stems (remove any tough thick stems), roughly chopped. To make this with frozen spinach, see notes below.; 1 bunch of green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced, white and light green parts only; 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped; 3 large eggs, whisked; 8 ounces of good quality Feta cheese, cut into 1/4-inch cubes; 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more, to taste; 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper plus more, to taste; 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional); 4 green onions, thinly sliced; 2 ounces crumbled or diced feta

June 29, 2018 Updated December 6, 2021 by Lisa Goldfinger 26 Comments This post may contain affiliate links

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This Greek spinach pie can happily take center stage at a vegetarian lunch or dinner. Inspired by traditional spanakopita, this spinach feta pie is gluten-free and it's all cooked in one skillet. A crust of golden sautéed potatoes encases the filling of spinach, onions, garlic, eggs, herbs and feta.

If you're like me and you love to find delicious ways to eat huge amounts of vegetables, you'll appreciate this recipe. The crust has no flour. It's purely potatoes. The veggie-intense filling has a full two pounds of fresh spinach, one of the world's healthiest foods.

The spinach is wilted in the pan with onions, garlic and butter, then mixed with fresh dill, sliced green onions and feta. All that savory goodness is baked in a golden brown potato crust.

This Greek spinach pie is inspired by traditional spanakopita, made with a very similar filling but a totally different crust. I love crisp buttery phyllo dough but for many reasons, I decided to go with potatoes for this recipe.

First: I wanted to develop a gluten-free spanakopita recipe because I know SO many people who are not eating gluten these days. Second: working with phyllo is a bit tricky. The third and biggest reason: I LOVE potato crusted savory pies.

In fact, when I let my kitchen fantasies run wild, my thoughts go to dishes like this cauliflower gruyere pie with potato crust and bacon parmesan crumb topping that I created for a special pie event. And this muffin tin version that I developed for the Idaho Potato Commission: Mini Cauliflower Tarts with Potato Gruyere Crust. And this Healthy Spicy Shepherd's Pie recipe with ground turkey, loads of veggies and delicious spices, and olive oil mashed potatoes.

Potatoes make an awesome savory pie crust that's naturally gluten-free, high in vitamin C, potassium and fiber.

HOW TO MAKE GREEK SPINACH PIE IN POTATO CRUST

Slice the potatoes thinly with a sharp knife or mandolin. Sauté them in batches, for two minutes per side. Set them on a paper towel lined plate and season them with a little salt and pepper. (try to keep a better eye on them than I did so they don't burn).

Wipe out the skillet you used for the potatoes. Melt some butter in it and cook the onions and garlic until translucent. Add chopped spinach, a few handfuls at a time, and toss in the pan until wilted.

Transfer the spinach mixture to a large bowl. Pour off excess liquid. Cool for a few minutes, and mix with the rest of the filling ingredients: chopped dill, sliced scallions, cubed feta, whisked eggs, salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg (optional).

Line your skillet with the sliced sautéed potatoes, overlapping them slightly, to form a crust.

Add the spinach feta filling and use the back of a spoon to even it out.

Cover with a lid or foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and continue to cook for 20 minutes more until the filling it set and there are crisp brown edges on the potatoes.

Slice your Greek spinach pie into eight wedges. Serve it warm or at room temperature. For garnish, add a sprinkle of chopped scallions or crumbled feta or both.

I love serving Greek spinach pie with this butter lettuce salad with citrus honey vinaigrette on the side.

For more crave-worthy vegetable recipes, check out my Pinterest board: Exceptional Vegetables.

Here's the recipe for Greek Spinach Pie In Potato Crust. If you try this recipe I hope you'll come back to leave a star rating and comment. I'd love to know what you think.

Greek Spinach Pie with Potato Crust

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4.8 from 4 reviews

Author: Lisa
Total Time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Yield: 6-8 1x

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Description

A crust of golden sautéed potatoes encased a filling of spinach, onions, garlic, eggs, herbs and feta in this delicious Greek Spinach Pie. The recipe is all cooked in one skillet that goes from oven to table. It's vegetarian and gluten-free.

Ingredients

Units Scale

4-6 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 pounds russet potatoes. (Choose 4 or 5 large, oblong potatoes so you get lots of rounds when you slice them crosswise and so the circumference of the rounds is less than the height of the sides of your skillet.
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 medium yellow onions, peeled and diced
2 large garlic cloves, minced (1 tablespoon)
2 pounds of fresh spinach leaves and tender stems (remove any tough thick stems), roughly chopped. To make this with frozen spinach, see notes below.
1 bunch of green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced, white and light green parts only
¼ cup fresh dill, chopped
3 large eggs, whisked
8 ounces of good quality Feta cheese, cut into ¼-inch cubes
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more, to taste
½ teaspoon ground black pepper plus more, to taste
⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg (optional)

Optional Garnishes:

4 green onions, thinly sliced
2 ounces crumbled or diced feta

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Instructions

Preheat oven to 375ºF. You will need a large (10-12-inch) cast iron or oven-ready skillet, with a lid or with foil to cover it.

Prepare The Potato Crust: Peel the potatoes and slice them crosswise into thin rounds about ⅛-inch thick.(see notes) Line a plate with a double layer of paper towels. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in the skillet medium heat. Sauté potatoes in batches, as many as will fit in a single layer in your pan, for 2 minutes per side or until browned in spots and softened. Transfer potatoes to the paper-towel-lined plate to drain. Sprinkle them with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Repeat with remaining potatoes, adding oil to the pan as needed and layers of paper towels to the plate, as needed.
Prepare The Filling: Wipe out the skillet and melt the butter in it, over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and translucent, 5-6 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Turn up the heat to medium-high and add the chopped spinach, a few handfuls at a time, stirring and tossing each time you add a bunch, until it's wilted enough to add another bunch. Repeat until all the spinach is wilted, 5-7 minutes. Transfer the spinach-onion mixture to a large bowl. Gently tip the bowl over the sink and pour off any excess liquid. When the spinach mixture has cooled for ten minutes or so, add the rest of the filling ingredients: green onions, dill, eggs, feta, salt, pepper and nutmeg, if using. Toss to combine.
Assemble The Spinach Pie: Again, wipe out your skillet and lightly oil or butter the inner sides and bottom. Arrange potato slices on the bottom and around the sides of the skillet, overlapping them slightly to create a solid crust (see photo in post). If you have any potatoes left over, they are delicious as is or dipped in ketchup!
Pour the spinach filling into the prepared crust and use the back of a spoon to spread it out evenly. Bake, covered with foil, for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake for 20 minutes longer until the filling is set and the edges of the potatoes are browned.
Slice the pie into eight wedges and serve warm or at room temperature. Garnish with sliced scallions and crumbled feta, if you like.

Notes

How to thinly slice potatoes for the crust: I like to slice the potatoes by hand with a very sharp knife. If you have a mandolin slicer, that will work well too.

How to make this with frozen spinach: Use 20 ounces of frozen spinach for this recipe. To defrost, place the frozen spinach in a mesh colander and run lukewarm water over it until the ice melts. Squeeze most of the water out of the spinach by pressing it against the colander. After you sauté the garlic in step #2, add the spinach and toss it with the rest of the ingredients, to combine and heat the spinach. Continue with the recipe as written.

Prep Time: 25 mins
Cook Time: 1 hour
Category: Main Dish
Method: bake
Cuisine: Greek

Greek Spinach Pie in Potato Crust

HOW TO MAKE GREEK SPINACH PIE IN POTATO CRUST