Bosnian spinach pie

This is the pie I needed milk ricotta for, Bosnian spinach pie. Actually all over the Balkans you can find a variety of this pie, shaped differently but filled with spinach, cheese or some kind of creamy diary. This pie is actually type of a strudel but much thinner and differently shaped.

The best is to use fresh spinach, it gives the best consistency and it does not make the pie too much wet. Fresh spinach also absorbs eggs better then frozen spinach.

I prefer to cut the dough in three parts and then to stretch each part individually to have three dough sheets. But if you want you can stretch all the dough at the same time so that you have one big dough sheet.

Bosnian spinach pie

serves 4

600 gr fresh spinach (not cleaned)
or 350 gr cleaned & wilted spinach
200 gr milk ricotta
2 eggs

salt and pepper

2,5 dl strong bread flour

2,5 tbsp oil

1/4 tsp salt

about 7 tbsp warm water

80 gr melted butter for brushing the dough sheets
round baking dish, 28 cm

Start with making the strudel dough and let it rest. Wash and clean the spinach, cut it in thicker stripes and steam in a sieve until wilted. You can also wilt it by putting a tiny bit of water in a saucepan and cook for couple of minutes until wilted. Let cool and then squeeze out as much water as you can. Set aside.

Stretch the dough, I made 3 dough sheets, each approximately 60x35cm. Let dry until you finish preparing the filling. Add eggs to the spinach, salt and pepper and blend everything with your hand until the eggs have been absorbed by the spinach. Drizzle the melted butter over the stretched dough.

Put a third of the spinach filling on the long side of the dough sheet, and third of the milk ricotta over the spinach, leaving 5 cm edge all around. Roll until you have used all dough. Grease the baking dish and put the pie roll inside, shaping it as spiral. Repeat with two other dough sheets.

Brush the top with some melted butter and bake on 180 C for about 45 minutes. Serve warm.