SPANOKOPITA (GREEK SPINACH PIE)

      Title: SPANOKOPITA (GREEK SPINACH PIE)
  Categories: Greece
       Yield: 1 Servings
  
       2 pk Frozen spinach (10 oz)
            Salt, preferably sea salt
       1    Onion, chopped
       1 lb Fresh mushrooms, sliced
            Olive oil
            Butter
       1    Clove garlic, minced
            Ground pepper to taste
       6    Eggs
       1 c  Feta cheese
       1 c  Parmesan cheese, grated
     1/4 c  Chopped fresh parsley
       1 ts Oregano
     1/4 ts Dried rosemary (optional)
     1/4 lb Butter
       1 lb Filo dough
  
   If you are using fresh spinach, wash the spinach and remove the tough
   stems.  Place in a large bowl and sprinkle heavily with salt. Rub the
   salt into the leaves by taking them up, a bunch at a time, and
   rubbing them between your hands; the volume of the spinach will
   decrease before your eyes.  Tear the spinach up as you do this. Rinse
   the salt off thoroughly and dry the spinach, squeezing it in bunches
   in a towel. (If you are using frozen spinach, just let it thaw and
   squeeze out excess moisture).
   
   Saute the onion and mushrooms in a little olive oil and butter with
   the garlic and salt and pepper to taste. When both the onions and
   mushrooms are tender, remove from the heat.
   
   Beat the eggs in a large bowl and crumble in the feta cheese; add the
   Parmesan, then the spinach, onions, and mushrooms. Stir in the
   parsley, oregano, rosemary, some freshly ground pepper, and a little
   salt (remember that the feta is very salty).
   
   Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
   
   Melt the butter and brush a 2-quart or 3-quart oblong baking pan with
   it. Spread your filo dough out flat next to the pan. Take a sheet and
   lay it in the pan, letting the edges come out over the pan. Take
   another sheet and lay it on top of the first, not directly but in
   such a way that its edges extend over different parts of the pan.
   Brush with butter. Continue to layer the sheets of filo, brushing
   every other one with butter and turning each one slightly so that the
   edges fan out over the sides of the pan, until you have about eight
   sheets left.
   
   Now spread the spinach mixture evenly over the filo dough in the pan,
   pushing it into the corners.  Take the edges of the filo and fold
   them in over the spinach mixture.
   
   Take the remaining sheets of filo and layer them one by one over the
   spinach mixture, again brushing every other sheet with butter, but
   this time pushing the edges down into the sides of the pan. It is
   difficult to do this neatly; just rumple the edges down into the
   sides of the pan (they will form a nice crisp edge after baking).
   Brush the top of the spanokopita with butter and make +-inch-deep
   diagonal slashes across it with a sharp knife.
   
   Bake for 50 minutes, until the crust is puffed up and golden; it will
   shrink from the sides of the pan.  Cut into squares or diamond shapes
   and serve immediately.
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