My father, George Manousos, came by boat, to this country from Andros, Greece in 1923. He was a 17 year old illegal immigrant who didn't speak of word of English. He joined the US Army during World War II to not only fight for his country, but become an American citizen. While he was stationed in England, he meet Anne Milne and they fell in love. She moved to America and they married in December 1946.
I grew up in a neighborhood of immigrants. We had Greeks, Italians, Scots, Norwegians and more. My Mom tried all their recipes. Here is one of my favorite Greek recipes that I grew up with.
Spanikopita (Spinach Pie)
3 (10 oz.) packages of frozen chopped spinach(I take the spinach out of the packages and put the spinach in a colander to defrost overnight. I then press the rest of the water out in the morning)
1/3 cup olive oil
1 cup chopped scallions
6 oz feta cheese, crumbled
1 cup cottage cheese
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1 teaspoon chopped dill
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
8 oz. filo pastry
olive oil for assembling pie
1. Drain the moisture from the spinach.
2. Gently fry scallions in oil until soft and add oil and onions to spinach.
3. Stir in cheeses, herbs, eggs, nutmeg
4. Lightly oil a 13x9 pan.
5. Line dish with 10 sheets of filo pastry, brushing each sheet with oil.
6. Add spinach filling and spread evenly.
7. Place remainder of the filo on top, brushing each sheet with oil.
8. Trim excess filo pastry.
9. Brush top with oil and bake for about 45 minutes.
10. Remove from oven and let stand for 5 minutes before cutting into squares.
Serves: 6
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Oven Temperature: 375 degrees
(This recipes also freezes well. Just put it together (don't bake it) and stick it in the freezer.)
I love to serve Spanakopita with a big Greek salad.
Hope you enjoy it as much a my friends, family and I do!
