Easy Red Lentil Spanakopita Recipe (video)

[Saviolo]

This was a bit of an experiment for us, and it worked out very well! It's based on a couple of recipes we had seen recently and put together our own version of it. The pastry here is a batter made from red lentils, cottage cheese, and eggs. If that sounds like it won't work, that's what we thought until we tried it! The end result was fluffy (thanks to the baking powder) and crispy on the outside, with a nice crispy bottom crust.

The filling is a very standard spanakopita sort of filling made from onion, spinach, and feta cheese. It probably could have used more feta, honestly. You could very easily adjust the flavour profile with the addition of garlic or other herbs or spices. Fresh dill would be an excellent addition to this. The garnish we were hoping for was nigella seeds, but we had a hard time tracking them down locally, so we just used black sesame seeds. You could also put some half cherry or grape tomatoes on top before baking, much like a focaccia.

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[BobTheSubgenius]

1. This looks absolutely excellent!

For my own enjoyment, I wouldn't change a thing, but my friends' son is vegan, so a swap-out of feta for vegan substitute would be perfect for him. Thankfully, he has left his more militant nature behind, in which he honoured a pledge he made to not sit at the same table as people eating non-vegan.

He has changed me into a non-traditional vegan in that I still wear leather and eat meat.

[Saviolo]

2. You could easily leave the feta out

It is entirely optional. The sour tang of it does give a lovely flavour to things, so you may wish to add a little lemon juice or something into the spinach.

[BobTheSubgenius]

4. At least in traditional spanakopita, the feta is the part I most enjoy.

My wife and I have horiatiki at least a couple of times a week, especially in the summer. I love all kinds of Greek dishes, but my wife and friends don't share my enthusiasm...at least, not to the breadth and depth I do.

[Marthe48]

3. I might try this

I have a pastry recipe that calls for almond flour, egg and Mozzarella. It was for a sweet pastry, but I experimented, left the monk fruit out, and it made a really good pizza crust.

My daughter makes a cookie with beans, called Million Dollar Bar. You don't miss the flour