Roy’s Light Spanakopita Appetizer

Makes 24 triangles 0 Better balance Bites/Blue Points for 1 / 1 Bite/Point for up to 3

Calories 26 Fat 0.5g Carbs 3.2g Fiber 1g Protein 1.5g

Ingredients

· 1 tsp olive oil (see notes)

· 1 small onion, diced

· 2 tsp minced garlic, about 2 cloves (or to taste)

· 1 tsp dried dill (see notes)

· 10 oz. pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry (see notes)

· 1/3 cup fat-free feta

· 1 egg, lightly beaten

· 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

· 4 sheets of low-bite/low-point flatbread (I used Cut da Carb) (see notes)

· Spray butter (I used I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter) (see notes)

Directions

1. Make the filling: Set a medium skillet over medium heat and add the oil. Once the oil is hot, add the onions and cook, stirring regularly, until they start to soften, about 4 minutes. Stir in the garlic and dill and cook another minute. Stir in the spinach, then remove to a bowl and allow to cool slightly, stirring occasionally to disperse the heat, about 5 minutes.

2. Mix the beaten egg and ground pepper into the spinach mixture. Once incorporated, mix in the feta. Set aside as you prepare the flatbread.

3. Assemble the triangles: Preheat the oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or spray with cooking spray.

4. On a clean surface, lay out one flatbread, leaving the others covered with a damp towel so they don’t dry out. Using a knife or pizza cutter, cut it into 6 equal pieces across the longer edge (meaning they will all be the length of the shorter edge). Place under the damp towel and repeat until all the flatbreads have been cut.

5. On a clean surface, place one strip of flatbread and coat with one spritz of spray butter. In one corner, place 1 heaping teaspoon of filling mixture on the end closest to you. Fold the corner of the flatbread strip over the filling to form a triangle, meeting the short edge with the long edge. Continue this, moving toward the empty end of the flatbread strip. NOTE: There may be an extra little piece of flatbread at the end. You can fold it under the triangle or cut it off.

6. Place the triangle on the prepared baking sheet, cover with another damp towel, and repeat with the remaining flatbread strips and filling. Since they won’t expand in the oven, the triangles can be placed fairly close together on the baking sheet.

7. Bake about 15 minutes until golden brown and crisp. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before serving.

NOTES

· If you’d prefer not to use olive oil, feel free to use cooking spray.

· If you’d prefer to use fresh dill, add twice as much and add it when adding in the feta.

· Switch out the herbs according to your taste.

· Instead of frozen spinach, you can use 10 oz. of fresh spinach. Add it to the pan during the last 5 minutes of cooking the onions. Allow them to wilt completely, cooking off any moisture released before removing from the heat. Cool for at least 10 minutes before adding the remaining ingredients or the egg will cook and the feta cheese will melt.

· You can use the phyllo dough sheets, found in the frozen section, in place of the flatbreads. You will need about 20 sheets, defrosted, and must follow the same procedure as with the flatbreads EXCEPT you will need to spray each strip of phyllo dough with spray butter and then lay a second piece of phyllo on top before adding the filling. Baking time should be the same.

· Change it up entirely by replacing the flatbreads with mushroom caps!

o Clean your mushrooms well, rinsing them briefly under cool water, then stuff with the

filling.

o You can add the stems to the filling by chopping them up and cooking them with

the onions.

o The number you get will depend on the size of your mushrooms, but I have

calculated the bites, points, calories, and macros using 3 cups of mushrooms (the

Healthi app didn’t give the option for numbers of mushrooms).

Makes 24 mushrooms 0 Better balance Bites/Blue Points for up to 9 / 1 Bite/Point for all

Calories 18 Fat 0.5g Carbs 1.9g Fiber 0.6g Protein 1.4g

· You could air-fry the spanakopita, but I would suggest sealing the edges with an egg wash and letting it dry a few minutes before air-frying since when I tried this, they blew open from the air. I would air-fry them at the same temperature, but for about 6-8 minutes.

· Store any leftover spanakopita in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in a toaster oven or oven for a couple minutes to regain their crispness.

· I have forgotten to spray the flatbreads with spray butter before filling them. If you do that, feel free to simply spray the tops before they go in the oven.

· You can prepare the stuffing 2-3 days in advance. You can also prepare the triangles themselves a day in advance, cover with plastic wrap, refrigerate, and pop them in the oven when ready. You may need to add a minute or two to the baking time.

· You can likewise assemble the triangles and freeze them, covered, on the baking sheet. They can be baked directly from frozen, but will need an extra 10-15 minutes to bake.