Spinach Roll

I think it is time for another recipe. I had been making this yummy spinach roll as an appetizer and bringing it to parties throughout the holiday season. It's very simple and has lots of flavor from the fresh herbs and feta cheese. I used to make it from refrigerated crescent dough but I discovered that frozen puff pastry works a lot better - no little triangles to try and pinch together to make one large rectangle! I got a few requests for the recipe so here it is finally.

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (it takes about 40 minutes to thaw on the counter)

1 TBLS Olive Oil

1/2 medium onion, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1 10 ounce pkge frozen spinach, thawed and excess water squeezed out

2 TBLS chopped fresh parsley

1 TBLS chopped fresh dill

4 oz crumbled feta cheese

4 oz shredded mozzarella cheese

1 small jar marinated artichokes, slightly chopped

1 egg, beaten

sesame seeds

salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

1. Heat a medium skillet and coat with olive oil. Add the chopped onions and red pepper and saute until softened. Turn off heat.

2. In a medium bowl mix together thawed spinach, parsley, dill, feta, and mozzarella. Add the onion and red pepper mixture and chopped artichokes. Season with salt and pepper.

3. Lightly flour puff pastry and roll with a rolling pin to flatten seams.

4. Brush pastry with beaten egg. Then with a sharp paring knife make cuts approx. 1" wide, 1/3rd of the way into the pastry dough on the long edge. Do this on both sides. Then place spinach mixture in the center of the pastry dough (uncut area). Flatten slightly with the back of a spatula making sure mixture extends the length of the dough but not onto the cut strips.

5. Bring cut strips of dough across the top of the spinach to the center and connect them together. (the egg wash will help them stick together) Sometimes I twist the strips as I bring them over the spinach. In the picture above I did not do that.

6. Brush top with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

7. Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until golden brown.

8. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Enjoy!