Bosnian Pita (phyllo pie) with Spinach Filling

Bosnian Pita (phyllo pie) with Spinach Filling

  • Prep Time: 45 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hrs 45 mins
  • Servings: 8

    • About This Recipe

    “This is one of the most delicious dishes I have ever come across. It is special to me because it is my husband’s favorite dish from his old country. My mother in law and his aunt, both from Bosnia, taught me how to make it, even though they do not speak much English. They even make their own dough, but making phyllo dough is very difficult and they assured me it is more than okay “

    Ingredients

  • 1packagethawed phyllo pastry sheet
  • 2bagswashed fresh spinach
  • 1egg
  • 1/4 cupsour cream( can use low fat)
  • 1/2 lbfeta cheese, crumbled
  • 1cupshredded mild cheddar cheese
  • olive oil
  • 1 1/2 teaspoonssalt
  • low-fat milk
  • low-fat plain yogurt(optional)

    • Directions

  • WASH HANDS (This recipe requires you to work with the food directly with your hands).
  • Preheat oven to 350.
  • Wash and drain spinach.
  • Chop spinach and put in a big glass bowl.
  • Add salt and mix with hands.
  • Leave the spinach to sit for about 10 minutes to allow the salt to draw out the water from the vegetable.
  • The water in spinach will make the filling bitter so do not skip this step.
  • Drain the spinach by either sqeezing it bit by bit with your hand over the sink or by spinning several times in a salad spinner.
  • Transfer drained spinach into a new bowl.
  • Add egg, and sour cream.
  • Fold in feta and cheddar cheese.
  • Put some olive oil in a small bowl.
  • Grease a 9″*13″ glass or metal baking pan.
  • Take your phyllo dough sheets and lie the sheets, stacked, on a dry surface.
  • TIP: (While adding the filling, you may wish to cover the dough with a dry towel and then a damp one to keep it from drying out or flaking) Place one sheet of dough into the pan and cut away excess.
  • Brush with oil, using either your hands or a pastry brush.
  • Repeat until dough is 6 or 7 layers.
  • Add a skim of filling with hands and spread evenly.
  • Repeat steps 16-18 until the pie reaches the top of the pan or you run out of ingredients.
  • Just make sure you finish with the dough on top, sort of like lasagna.
  • Place pie in the oven, uncovered, about 45 minutes.
  • The top becomes flaky.
  • Pour on top of the pie while it is baking, 1/4 cup sour cream blended with 0.125 cup of milk.
  • Bake for 15 more minutes.
  • This dish can be served warm or room temperature.
  • It is traditionally served with a yogurt beverage which is easily replicated by mixing the plain yogurt with milk, in equal parts.

    • Reviews

  • “No wonder this is delicious. In eastern Europe pita is one of the best and most frequently made dish, my family makes pita at least once or twice a week. I’m talking about the real Pita made with hand made dough, phyllo sheets are a good substitute for those who don’t know how to make the dough but nothing tastes like Pita if it is not made all from scratch>> try a cabbage filling (the sauerkraut kind), boil a little to soften and add some milk and it will be delicious.”

  • “Pitas can be made with a lot of things: spinach, cottage cheese, potatoes, or meat. In Bosnia and Herzegovina the word burek refers only to the meat variant, while the one with cottage cheese being called sirnica, one with spinach and cheese zeljanica, one with potatoes krompiruÅ¡a, and all of them are referred as pita (trans. pie).They can also be converted into a dessert dish, using apples and cinnamon as filling… but they can caramelize easily and than burn. The phyllo dough is a good substitute but it’s not the same as making and stretching your own dough… I can’t do it because my dough always breaks. The pouring of sour cream with milk (or just milk) is a characteristic step in making pita since it makes the food very soft. Pita it’s not supposed to be crispy.”

  • “This recipe is fabulous.I am a lover of the greek spanikopita and the sour cream milk topping on this version really enhances the flavor!”

  • “This was an excellent recipe. It really came out well. The leftovers, I can assure you, did not last long. I did, however, skip step 23 which was the sour cream and milk mixture that was to go on top. I enjoy the crispy phyllo. I also did not have enough spinach and, subsequently, substituted some sauted vegetables. Great Food!!!!!!!”

  • “Great recipe. Authentic Flavor. Well worth the work put into it. I did however rinse the spinach before I drained it. Also I covered the pie loosely with foil after 15 minutes in the oven as it was quite brown by this time. I removed it again during the last 15 minutes. It came out perfect. “

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