Dinner Tonight: Spanakopita Grilled Cheese

Spanakopita is great. Hassling with phyllo dough on a weekday is not. It rips. It tears. It dries out. Not a fun thing on a Tuesday!

Enter: the Spanakopita Grilled Cheese. It has all the cheesy, garlicky greens of a spanakopita, but between much more manageable slices of bread. And the even better news is you're about 20 minutes (less if you really hustle) away from eating it. (Yes, we know!) If this grilled cheese becomes an every day thing, we think even traditional spanakopita will understand.

Spanakopita Grilled Cheese

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Grocery List

Organized by area of the market

• One 10-ounce bag baby spinach, or 2 big handfuls
• 1 teaspoon chopped dill
• 2 ounces feta, crumbled
• 4 thin slices provolone cheese
• 4 slices good-quality bread

We're assuming you already have 1 thinly sliced clove garlic (sliced thin), 1 thinly sliced shallot, 1 tablespoon softened butter, 2 tablespoons olive oil, and a pinch of salt and freshly cracked pepper. If not, add them to your list, too!

About 20 minutes before dinner, plug in your panini press and get it nice and hot! (Alternatively, you just use a skillet.) Butter one side of each of the four slices of bread. In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, add the olive oil followed by the garlic and shallot and cook until the garlic is golden-brown, about 4 minutes. Add the spinach, season with salt and pepper, and cook for a few minutes or until the spinach is wilted and most of the moisture has cooked out. Add the dill and feta, turn off the heat, then mix.

About 10 minutes before dinner, assemble the sandwiches by placing two of the butter side-down slices of bread on your panini press or pan. Add a slice of provolone on top of each, divide the spinach mixture between the two slices of bread, and top with the remaining slices of provolone and bread (butter side-up).

If using a panini press, put the lid down and cook for about 5 minutes. Or, if using a pan, flip after about 5 minutes, then cook on the other side for 3 minutes. The grilled cheese is done when it's golden and bubbly.

See the full recipe here.