This authentic Greek recipe has gotten a makeover and is better than ever. This vegan spanakopita is hands down the absolute best you've ever had!
Well, it happened. And it happened hard. The true test was giving it to my boys who often eat her original version with feta. Let's just say that they asked me why I can't make "pita" like yiayia does. I may have danced in my kitchen like a fool.
I grew up eating my mom's spanakopita on a weekly basis, and now my boys take it down like hungry lions. It's as much a staple in our lives as water. I have always wanted to try a vegan makeover but it's such a coveted recipe that I was afraid to attempt it.
Well, lately I have been working with this incredible business coach, turned good friend, that has helped me tackle all these fears of mine that have been holding me back in scaling my business. So I decided, tackling this vegan spanakopita version was step one to my growth. And dang, I nailed it!
How do you mimic feta with a dairy free alternative
So feta is really just salt and tang. As much as I am against pretend feta (there is no recipe I found out there that comes close) in this vegan feta recipe all I needed to do was recreate the flavor because the texture is simply a ricotta like mixture.
One of my mom's personal twists in her original Greek spanakopita, is that she uses half feta and half cottage cheese to lighten up the filling. She has always done it this way so I knew that I could recreate that texture with cashews.
The flavor was easy, white vinegar gave the tang I needed and salt gave it that authentic saltiness. I left out the egg because you really don't need it for texture, but the rest of the recipe I followed as is.
Making vegan spanakopita step by step
The process itself is really quite easy, but there are multiple steps to getting it just right:
- Sauté the green onion and greens.
- Blend the simple 4 ingredient "feta' like filling.
- Combine the two.
- Layer the phyllo sheets at the bottom.
- Spread the mixture when you are half way through.
- Add the rest of the phyllo sheets.
- Cut into pieces.
- Bake and enjoy!
The kind of phyllo you use doesn't really matter, but I have found that the thicker phyllo sheets are easier to work with and come out a bit better. So if you have a choice, try finding a package that says "thick" or "#9 thick" to signify a thicker phyllo sheet.
If you like this Greek recipe turned vegan, don't miss all the others I have created too!
Healthy Vegan Gyros and Tzatziki Sauce
And if you love to eat food that tastes good but is actually healthy, check out this post!
World's Best Greek Vegan Spanakopita
Ingredients
- 12 ounces fresh spinach , chopped (can also use a mixture of spinach and chard)
- 1 bunch scallions , chopped (about 6-7 scallion bulb pieces)
- ¼ cup dill
- ¼ cup parsley , either kind works but I use Italian flat leaf
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Olive oil or veggie broth for sautéing
- 1 pound phyllo (filo) sheets , if you can find the thick ones use those (see note for gluten-free)
- ⅙ - ⅓ cup olive oil for brushing phyllo (filo) (see notes for oil free idea)
- 1 cup vegan feta cheese recipe , store bought or homemade (linked here, make sure to add these ingredients to your list if making homemade)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F/ 175 C.
- In a skillet brown the scallions in olive oil or broth until soft, about 2 minutes.
- Add spinach, salt and pepper and sauté until wilted, about 5 minutes. Turn off the heat.
- Add dill and parsley and mix well. Put the mixture in a large bowl.
- If making homemade vegan feta then in a food processor, add the cashews (drain and rinse them after the soaking), vinegar, water and salt. Pulse until you get a chunky but coarsely chopped texture.
- Pour the store bought or cashew “feta” mixture into the bowl with the spinach and mix well.
- Pour the olive oil for brushing in a glass bowl. Or use the method for the oil free version.
- A little trick, cut the phyllo (filo) edge to fit the length of your pan, cut it while it is still rolled up in the package to make it easy. Meaning, keep it rolled, measure it in your pan then slice off the edge so that it fits in your pan well. You can keep the extra and use it for other things or if you're like my sister and I, we loved to eat it when we were young!
- Brush the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking pan with a little bit of oil.
- Then line the pan with half of one phyllo (filo) sheet, allowing the other half to hang over the edge, brush the half in the pan with some oil, then fold the other half over the top and brush it with oil too. See the photos in the post. This has to be done like this because the phyllo (filo) sheets are bigger than the pan.
- You are going to do this for half of the phyllo (filo) sheets, brushing each sheet with the olive oil.
- After you have used half of the sheets, spread the spinach mixture on top.
- Then top with the remaining phyllo (filo) sheets brushing each of them with the olive oil again.
- When done, cut into squares.
- Bake for 60-70 minutes until it is golden brown on top. Begin checking at 50 minutes as ovens vary.
- Let it cool completely before cutting through and serving.
Notes
- You can also use frozen spinach for this recipe. Just make sure to squeeze out all the water after it defrosts so that it doesn't get watery.
- Any kind of phyllo (filo) sheets will work but I find the thicker ones are quicker and easier. If you can find a package that says “thick” or “#9 thick” then get those.
- To make this gluten-free, you can make your own filo (search online for recipes), you can buy gluten-free puff pastry (Schar brand makes one) or you can be creative and use gluten-free pizza dough or tortillas and make individual pockets.
- If making homemade vegan feta, make the entire linked recipe to use here. If you forget to soak the cashews, simply boil them for about 25 minutes. They need to be soft so do not skip this step and use them dry.
- If you want to keep this oil free, sauté with broth and you can try to use a version of the trick I used in my Vegan Baklava to get the phyllo crispy. It called for Aquafaba mixed with almond butter and maple syrup since it's a dessert, but you can try it with just the aquafaba or the Aquafaba and almond butter. It’s better with the oil, but if you want to make this oil free, the aquafaba should work like it did in the baklava recipe. Keep in mind that the phyllo dough still has some oil in it.
- This makes 24 pieces, each piece is a serving in the nutrition info.
- Make the filling the day before.
Recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite, visit our site for more great plant-based recipes.
Nutrition
Nutrition and metric information should be considered an estimate.
AraG
WOW! Delicious! I actually made this with a Vegan pie crust instead since I didn't have phyllo. It turned out so good.
Thank-you Sophia for sharing.
veggiesdontbite
Thank you so much! So happy you liked it!
CYNTHIA MCCARTHY
Love this! I always make spanakopita folded up and I did make this recipe that way but I may try it your way if I make this for a party. I did add a little olive oil to the cashew cheese in the food processor and liked the texture better. Going to try this with gluten free puff pastry for a celiac relative.
veggiesdontbite
Thanks so much for the great review Cynthia! Glad you liked it!
Mindy
We just made these again today and plan to make more to bring to a backyard 4th of July gathering with friends. This recipe is a winner every time. They are absolutely delicious. Thank you
veggiesdontbite
I am so happy you like them Mindy!! Thank you so much for the great review!
Vegan in BK
I make this all the time. I even use the filling for bourekas occassionally! One point of confusion.... how in the world are people finding 12 oz of spinach enough?? I often double or even triple the spinach. 12 oz seems tiny to me. Am I doing something wrong?
Regardless, it really is the best and SO EASY
veggiesdontbite
I'm so happy you like it! The reason the spinach is only 12 ounces is to balance it out with the feta. Just the way we have always liked it. But definitely add more if you want!
Olivia
I made this for my dad’s birthday dinner. My dad was born and raised in Thessaloniki, Greece, and he couldn’t tell that it was vegan! My whole family loved it! Thanks so much for the great recipe!
veggiesdontbite
I am so thrilled he liked it Olivia!! Thank you so much for letting me know!
Mathilde
I have just tried this and I must admit it is even better than the "original" non-vegan recipe. I'm amazed 🙂 Thank you for sharing your wonderful greek vegan recipes with us
veggiesdontbite
Oh my gosh Mathilde! Thank you so so much for the amazing review!
Sarah Quinn
I made this last night, so delicious - I just dumped the spinach straight into the food processor from the pan and blitzed it for a minute to save a bowl. i didn't have white vinegar so used Apple Cider. Had it with a delicious quinoa, spinach, pear and nut salad with a herb vinegarette on the side. Will be making this again! Will definitely try it with violife just life feta added in for extra cheese factor next time!
veggiesdontbite
That sounds awesome Sarah! So happy you liked it. Thank you for the great review!
Calli
Your recipe sounds delicious, but spanakopita didn’t need to have a Vegan makeover. Greeks have been making a vegan version of spanakopita for as long as the Greeks have been orthodox Christians. If you would like to see the traditional vegan version just google Lenten spanakopita. In fact many Greek dishes have a vegan version—- they just call it Lenten or nistisimo.
veggiesdontbite
Hi Calli! I am actually first generation Greek and grew up in an authentic greek family, visiting every year and actually living there for a year. My mom made "pita" as we called it and hers has feta which is dairy based so it did need a vegan makeover. The "pita" we eat for nistisimo doesn't have feta and I wanted to recreate my mom's authentic famous "pita" to be vegan friendly and it is absolutely amazing. Even my fully Greek family can't even tell it isn't my moms whenever I make it. Same goes for many of her other dishes. I don't simply leave out the meat or dairy as is typically done for all nistisimo fagito, I actually use plants to create the meat and dairy so it can be enjoyed much like the originals. Hope you give it a try!
Annika Anastassiou
Very good!! I will try this today!! My husband is Greek and my mother in law who I loved much and she was always very kind to me, always made me vegetarian food! But now Im vegan and I’m looking forward to eat the spanakopita in vegan version! Thank you for sharing this recipie!
veggiesdontbite
Thank you so much Annika! Hope you enjoy it!
Sarah
Is this made with a butter free phyllo dough?
veggiesdontbite
Hi Sarah! You'll have to look at the box of the phyllo you use. Mine did not have butter.
Ellen
I made this last night to reminisce of being in Mykonos and Athens this time last year. I honestly have to say this is the best Spanakopita I have ever had ... regardless of it being Vegan - thank you for a fantastic recipe - this will be a firm weekly staple in our house!
veggiesdontbite
Oh my gosh, thank you SO much! You made my day!! So happy you loved it!
Oran
This was great. I love the idea of cutting it into squares before baking. I've wasted so much time folding half filo sheets with a filling into triangles. This made the dish so easy, elegant to serve for company and delicious. This was a last minute recipe - so I made it with onions instead of scallions, chard without spinach and I used lemon juice instead of vinegar (I didnt' have any - I'm not a vinegar type of gal) and it was excellent. Even my anti-vegan son enjoyed it. Thanks so much. This is going to be a regular dish at our home.
veggiesdontbite
I'm so happy you liked it Oran!! Yes, my mom always taught me to cut first. Much harder to cut crisp filo than raw. Thanks for sharing your subs!!
Marisa
Girrrlllll....this blew my little Vegan mind. Wow...wow...WOW. I first discover Greek food when I got a job at a Greek restaurant. I fell hard. Over the years it has been a staple in my diet. My kids are pro-level greek food eaters. I went Vegen and many greek items I thought were just out of question. Well you proved me wrong TODAY! I had to sub dried herbs for fresh and a Vegan puff pastry for filo dough..ya know stuff I had on hand. #QuarantineLife You just don't miss anything, not the butter, not the cheese. It has all the notes you expect from Spanakopita
veggiesdontbite
I am so happy you liked it Marisa!!! You totally made my day. I hope you can check out the other Greek recipes I have!
Woody
Hello, thanks for posting this. Does this recipe freeze? It is rather a lot to make at one time, so freezing individual pieces for later meals would be great.
veggiesdontbite
Hi Woody! Yes! it freezes quite well. You can freeze it uncooked, or cooked. I would wrap in plastic wrap, then foil and put in an airtight container or freezer bag.
Kerrin
I made this modified with pastry sheets I found for a great price at Patel Brothers Market, frozen spinach, and Violife Just Like Feta. It was phenomenal!!
veggiesdontbite
I'm so happy you liked it Kerrin! Thanks for the great review!
Sarah Thompson
Tried this yesterday, and it's excellent! I have been searching for a good vegan Spanikopita recipe for years. I must have tried over a dozen different recipes, some with tofu feta, some with cashew. My search is over! I was a bit nervous about the cashews, but even though they look chunky, the texture is great, you'd never know it was cashews. (I used the soak-in-boiling-water method). I used 4 tsp each of dried dill and dried parsley (did not have fresh on hand), I used 10 oz frozen chopped spinach (thawed) + about 4oz fresh spinach. The flavour reminds me of my old favourite (non-vegan) recipe from Moosewood Cookbook. Thank you, this is delicious!
veggiesdontbite
Thank you so so much Sarah! I am so happy you liked it! It's regular around here. I hope you find other recipes you love!
Nissrine
I sometimes make tofu and greens spanakopita triangles for Amal and I and do hubby's version with feta. Last night, my in laws were here and well my MIL doesn't eat tofu or feta and suggested doing hers with ricotta. I wasn't about to make 3 versions of my triangles....so I referenced this recipe and decided to use cashews and make it in a dish instead of triangles to save my sanity...one version and one dish. I had to make sure it DIDN'T taste like feta though....lol...since my MIL won't eat anything tangy, lemony or vinegary. I ended up making a cashew ricotta....i used a tiny amount of ACV and some nooch, a bit of salt and water and the end result was super tasty. I'll have to try your original recipe another time when the in laws aren't here. Baking it in a dish like that is way easier than triangles....eventhough triangles are super fun...this is decidedly more sane.
veggiesdontbite
Oh man, didn't taste like feta? What's the point, LOL! I would have just made a greens version. I'm happy you were able to go the sane route because making 3 versions sounds like way too much! Definitely try the original, it's so good!! We do them in triangles sometimes too. Thanks so much Nissrine!