Zeljanica (Burek).JPG

Savory spinach pie is a pastry eaten throughout the Balkans. The filling is made of chopped spinach (sometimes chard) and usually feta or white cheese, and egg.

Etymology and history

Turkey

''Ispanaklı Selanik Böreği'' and /or ''Ispanaklı Boşnak Böreği,'' is a Turkish savory spinach pie, or ''börek''. The ''börek'' gets its name from either Selanik (Thessaloniki) or Bosnia as it is widely common in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Bosnia and Herzegovina

''Zeljanica'' in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a savory pie filled with spinach, or sometime chard (in Serbo-Croatian ''blitva''); the word burek (Turkish ''börek'') is a pie filled with minced meat.

TasteAtlas, an encyclopedia of traditional dishes, in their presentation of the 100 best pastries in the world ranked Bosnian and Herzegovinian traditional pastry dishes, putting ''zeljanica'' above ''burek'', ''sirnica'' and ''krompiruša''.

Greece

''Spanakopita'' (; el, σπανακόπιτα, from ''spanáki'' 'spinach', and πίτα ''píta'' 'pie') is a Greek savory spinach pie. It often also contains cheese, typically feta, and may then be called ''spanakotiropita'' ( el, σπανακοτυρόπιτα "spinach-cheese pie"), especially in northern Greece. In southern Greece, the term spanakopita is also common for the versions with cheese. A version without cheese and eggs is eaten during religious fasts throughout Greece. Spanakopita appears in many traditional Greek cookery books and appears in numerous restaurants and hotel menus throughout Greece and internationally.

Ingredients and variations

The traditional filling comprises chopped spinach, feta cheese, onions or scallions, egg, and seasoning. Other white, preferably salted cheeses such as kefalotiri may also be mixed with the feta cheese, and some may be used as a substitute for feta cheese. Herbs such as dill, mint and parsley may be used as flavouring. The filling is wrapped or layered in phyllo (filo) pastry with butter or olive oil, either in a large pan from which individual servings are cut, or rolled into individual triangular servings. While the filo-dough recipe is most common, some recipes use a village-style pastry ''horiatiko'', which has a thicker crust. It can also be made with puff pastry. The pastry is golden in colour when baked, the colour often enhanced by butter and egg yolk. It can be served straight from the oven or at room temperature.

There is a " fasting" (; "nistisimi"), or vegan, version of spanakopita, eaten during Lent and other religious fasts. This version has spinach, onions or green onions, other green herbs like dill, parsley, or celery as filling and uses olive oil and a little wheat flour but no eggs or dairy products. The mixture is oven-baked until crisp. Non-traditional vegan versions are available that typically use tofu instead of cheese.

In rural Greece, smaller amounts of spinach are used, with the missing amount replaced with leeks, chard and sorrel.

Related pastries

''Börek'' or ''burek'' is a family of pastries or pies found in the Balkans, Middle East and Central Asia. The pastry is made of a thin flaky dough such as filo with a variety of fillings, such as meat, cheese, spinach, or potatoes. Boreks are mainly associated with the Middle East, Armenia, and also with the former Ottoman Empire, including the Balkans and the South Caucasus, Eastern European and Central European countries, Northern Africa and Central Asia.

See also

*Tiropita, a traditional Greek pie made with cheese
* Burek
* Rustico (pastry)
*Gibanica
*Bougatsa
*List of Turkish dishes
* List of Greek dishes
* List of pies, tarts and flans
* List of snack foods

References

{{pastries

Turkish pastries
Bosnia and Herzegovina pastries
Greek pastries
Savoury pies
Snack foods
Spinach dishes
Lenten foods

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