Spinach and Feta Turnovers on a cutting board with a cup of tea, and plates and forks on a table.

Today I invited my blog friend Katherine from Katherine Martinelli to Just One Cookbook as she just published her first e-cookbook called Puff Pastry at Brunch: 10 Sweet and Savory Recipes to Start Your Morning! I’m really excited because she’s my good blogger friend and this cookbook is about puff pastry! If you have been following my blog, you probably know that I rarely make desserts, and if I do, it’s mostly with puff pastry sheets. Without further ado, please welcome Katherine with delicious Spinach and Feta Turnovers!

*****

Katherine MartinelliI am so honored to be guest posting Just One Cookbook today! Although Nami and I have never met I feel like we are friends. Even though emails and blog posts, I can tell that she is a warm, kind soul who always tries to make time for everyone. I always enjoy emailing with Nami about blogging and food, and I want to try every single gorgeous dish that she makes. I feel so lucky to have Nami as a blog friend.

Today I am thrilled to share some very exciting news: I just published my first cookbook! It’s called Puff Pastry at Brunch: 10 Sweet and Savory Recipes to Start Your Morning and it is an e-cookbook. It was published by Hang Time Press, a lovely new media publishing house, and is available on Amazon Kindle and Barnes and Noble Nook for just $2.99. I hope you’ll check it out!

Puff Pastry at Brunch by Katherine Martinelli

All the recipes in the book call for prepared puff pastry, an ingredient that I’ve become obsessed with in recent years. I always have some stashed in my freezer and I can’t begin to tell you how often it has come to the rescue. Here I’ve used it as the base for one of my favorite meals: brunch. Although there are only 10 recipes, each one is really just a jumping-off point for other recipes and I provide lots of ideas for variations.

Spinach and Feta Turnovers II

Living in Israel, I’ve been exposed to so many new cuisines. Bourekas, a kind of savory turnover, have become a staple of my diet and are the inspiration for this recipe. They are common throughout the Middle East, Mediterranean, and North Africa and come with all kinds of fillings, from potato to “pizza.” Spinach and feta is one of my favorite flavor combinations, and it works perfectly here. These are great for brunch but work just as well as a breakfast on the run. I like to freeze some to reheat them for an easy snack.

Spinach and Feta Turnovers III

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Spinach and Feta Turnovers on a table with plates, forks, and a cup of tea.

Spinach and Feta Turnovers

5 from 7 votes
Spinach and feta is a perfect flavor combinations here and works well. These are great for brunch, but work just as well as a breakfast on the run or easy snack! 
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 6 Turnovers

Ingredients
 
 

  • 1 tsp extra virgin olive oil
  • ¼ cup onion (finely chopped)
  • 3 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 7 oz spinach leaves
  • Diamond Crystal kosher salt (for taste)
  • freshly ground black pepper (for taste)
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • 1 large egg (50 g each w/o shell) (separated)
  • 3 oz feta cheese (crumbled)
  • 12 oz frozen puff pastry (defrosted)
  • Za’atar (optional; this is a Middle Eastern and North African spice blend most commonly made up of some combination of dried thyme, oregano, marjoram, sumac, and sesame seeds. It is available at specialty food shops in the US and can be ordered from online spice shops such as The Spice House and Penzeys Spices.)
Japanese Ingredient Substitution: If you want substitutes for Japanese condiments and ingredients, click here.

Instructions
 

  • Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until just softened (be careful not to burn the garlic). Add the spinach and cook, stirring often, until fully wilted, about 3 minutes.
  • Remove from the heat. Season lightly with salt and pepper and vigorously stir in the lemon juice and egg yolk (reserve the egg white for later). Transfer the mixture to a bowl and allow to cool.
  • Once the spinach is cool enough to handle, squeeze out as much liquid as possible and roughly chop. (I realize that it seems counter-intuitive to put liquid in then squeeze it out, but after countless test runs this process led to the best results.) Return spinach to the bowl and thoroughly mix in the feta.
  • Preheat the oven to 400°F (200ºC). For a convection oven, reduce cooking temperature by 25ºF (15ºC). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Roll out the puff pastry to a rectangle about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick and 12" x 18" (30 x 46 cm). Cut into 6 even 5"-6" (13-15 cm) squares. Put a spoonful of the spinach-feta mixture into the center of each puff pastry square. Fold the puff pastry over to form a triangle. Press down with a fork along the edges to tightly seal.
  • Transfer the turnovers to the prepared baking sheet. Brush with the reserved egg white and sprinkle with za’atar, if using. Put in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.
    Spinach and Feta Turnovers 2
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving. Spinach-feta turnovers are excellent warm or at room temperature.

To Store

  • The turnovers can be made ahead and frozen. To freeze, lay flat on a baking tray and put in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer to freezer bags. To re-heat, simply bake in a pre-heated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until warmed through.

Notes

The recipe was provided by Katherine from Katherine Martinelli.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 380 kcal · Carbohydrates: 29 g · Protein: 8 g · Fat: 26 g · Saturated Fat: 8 g · Polyunsaturated Fat: 3 g · Monounsaturated Fat: 14 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 44 mg · Sodium: 338 mg · Potassium: 256 mg · Fiber: 2 g · Sugar: 1 g · Vitamin A: 3207 IU · Vitamin C: 11 mg · Calcium: 117 mg · Iron: 3 mg
Author: Namiko Hirasawa Chen
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cheese, puff pastry, spinach
©JustOneCookbook.com Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any website or social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
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5 from 7 votes (5 ratings without comment)
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What a beautiful dish – I always think spinach and feta are two things which just always “click together” so perfectly!

It’s so nice seeing you here on Nami’s blog, Katherine. Feta and spinach is a combination you find quite often in the ‘Ottoman’ cuisine and with a reason: It works so well together!

Funny how you mentioned bourekas. As my first thought when I saw your turnovers was “Börek!” which is the Turkish word for bourekas, basically. I love them and as Turkish cuisine is widespread in Germany, you could buy Böreks in my old school during recess.

Cheers and thanks for sharing,
Tobias

Nice to meet you, Katherine! Congratulations on your first cookbook and I hope more cookbooks to come. Thank you for sharing this wonderful and delicious looking turnovers and I want to thank Nami for having you as her guest.

~ ray ~

I love these turnovers! Kind of like spanakopita, which I really love!

My favorite combination of ingredients! Whenever I go out for a savory crepe, I have a spinach and feta one. This one is where I want to be

Congratulations on your first book! I love za’atar seasoning especially knowing that it’s topping puff pastry filled with spinach and feta! You said you make them in advance – do you freeze them? And if so, how do you reheat?

Thank you!! Yes, I bake them as directed and then freeze them flat on a baking sheet before transferring to an airtight container. When I want one I just pop it in a pre-heated oven or toaster oven for about 10-15 minutes.

Two of my favorite bloggers together… what can I ask more?!
These turnovers are delicious.. I love the combination between feta and spinach (and I love both separately :P)!

Absolutely amazing. I love this combo, and this guest post is gorgeous.

Good to see you here Katherine. Congrats on your ebook! I wish you much success with it. This spinach and feta turnovers sound delicious. They would make a wonderful snack or lunch.

Nami, great guest post! 🙂

Hi Nami and Katherine,
I love having a box of puff pastry in the freezer, I like the fact this is a savory recipe though. What a fun idea for a book. I love it how we have blogging friends who really should be our neighbors, huh.
-Gina-

I love spinach and feta, it’s such a delicious classic combination, and these look fantastic. It’s so wonderful to see Katherine here on your blog as I am fan of Katherine’s work. Congratulation on the launch of your cookbook Katherine!

Hey, this looks just gorgeous. I bought Zatar the other day use in my mutton recipe.

Katherine, what a great recipe! I like using puff pastry, so thank you for the inspiration for something else to make with it. Your turnovers look fabulous!

Nice guest post…just came from Katherine 🙂
Hope you are having a wonderful week Nami!

So nice to see you on Nami’s site Katherine! I love the flavors in this – spinach and feta is a winner combo for sure!