Simple Skillet Spinach And Cheese Pie Recipe

The combination of greens, herbs, and cheese under a pie crust is a timeless favorite that can be found in variations around the world, from French tourtes de blettes to, of course, Greek spanakopita. With a combination of tender savory greens and cheeses of varying creaminess, meltiness, or tanginess under a crispy pastry topping, it's not hard to see why. A simple and healthy one-pan recipe packed full of greens, our spinach pie is a comforting meal that you might want to add to your weekly dinner rotation. Its elegant appearance on the dinner table belies the actual simplicity of this recipe. All you have to do is saute some onions and garlic in olive oil, toss in a whole bunch of cooked spinach as well as fragrant herbs and aromatics, then add eggs and cheese, top it with a sheet of pre-made puff pastry, and pop it in the oven. Less than an hour later, you have a warm, delicious meal that you will feel great about eating.

Tucked beneath the top layer of crisp, flaky pastry, you will find a warm, hearty, cheesy filling that is positively packed with nutrients. And while this recipe does take over an hour to prepare — between prep and cooking time — most of that time is just waiting for the pie to bake. So, after a short spell at the stove, you can look forward to kicking up your feet, relaxing, and enjoying the delicious smells wafting through the house.

For this recipe you will need olive oil, onion, garlic, spinach, scallions, parsley, thyme, dill, red wine vinegar, salt, Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese, eggs, and puff pastry. After you have brought all of those ingredients together, you are just a few simple steps away from a delicious spinach pie.

Preheat the oven to 375 F.

Bring a large oven-safe skillet to medium heat and add the oil, followed by the onion and garlic. Cook for 3-5 minutes, until the onion is softened and translucent. Remove from the heat.

Stir in the spinach, parsley, scallions, dill, and thyme, and season with the vinegar and salt.

Add the ricotta, Parmesan, and eggs, and stir to mix well.

Top with the puff pastry. You may need to roll it out for it to be large enough to cover the top.

Trim the pastry to fit and crimp it tightly to the pan.

Slice a few steam vents in the pastry and brush it with a light layer of olive oil.

Bake for around 55 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and flaky.

Allow the pie to cool for at least 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

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The cheeses in this recipe serve two main purposes: The ricotta adds creamy heartiness to the filling, while the Parmesan is there primarily to add its savory, nutty flavor. But you can view this simple spinach pie recipe almost as a base from which to explore and create. It is a delicious recipe just as it is, but there is plenty of room to make it your own, and adding your favorite cheese to the mix is an easy way to give it a slight personal touch.

To replace the Parmesan, or simply add another layer of flavor, there is really no limit to which types of cheese you could try. You can give this spinach pie a briny bite similar to spanakopita by adding a bit of crumbled feta, but you could also add some aromatic depth with a handful of smoked Gouda. Consider a nice cheddar to add a complementary sharpness, or even a handful of gorgonzola crumbles for some interesting funk. It's hard to go wrong with cheese choices in a recipe like this.

Replacing the ricotta is a slightly different endeavor, but that too can be done. The best substitute for ricotta is likely cottage cheese. Cottage cheese will bulk out the pie just like the ricotta, giving it a nice heartiness with considerably less fat. But if reducing the fat isn't the primary concern, there are truly lots of substitutes for ricotta, from cream cheese to mascarpone or chèvre. Again, there's a lot of room to play in this simple spinach pie recipe.

You can think of this recipe as being a simpler version of a traditional spanakopita recipe. Built on greens and cheese, it shares many similarities with the Greek spinach pie. And just like the greens in Greek pies are variable, so too are they in this recipe.

In addition to spanakopita, there is another, similar, Greek dish called hortopita. This is essentially the wild version, trading the base of spinach for foraged greens and herbs — whatever is available and abundant — because while spinach is an essential Greek ingredient, so too are wild foraged greens. Feel free in this recipe to toy with the greens and herbs in the same way. Spinach is easy, as you can buy blocks of it frozen at the store. But if your garden is overflowing with kale or arugula, if your fennel is overgrown and the fronds need to be trimmed back, those all make great additions or substitutions in this recipe.

For any greens you wish to swap into this recipe, just be sure to cook them down first. The fresh herbs can be swapped without any changes. So, make this recipe as written, or give it a personal touch with your favorite herbs and whatever greens are abundant in your garden — or your backyard. This spinach pie recipe is as versatile as it is delicious.

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