Lebanese Spinach Pie

[Berlinsbreads]

I had a wonderful Spinach/Feta pie last weekend at a Middle Eastern restaurant that is primarily Lebanese. The pie was made with a crust that might have had whole wheat in it and it had sesame seeds on top. It was free form and individual sized. The filling was spinach and feta and I wondered if it might have had some grape leaves chopped up in it, too, as it seemed to have more depth of flavor than just spinach and feta but I really couldn't spot anything else that was obvious. I think I could probably "wing it" with recreating the pie but I would love to compare some recipes. I'm wondering if this is traditional to Middle Eastern cuisine or if it's a chef's creation?

Does anyone out there have a good recipe for something like this or know where to point me to find one? When I googled it, my hits were for Spanikopita, which this was not.

[maher]

they are called fatayer bi sabanekh. (literally.. spinach parcels) if you google the word fatayer you will find a ton of different recipes. they are traditionally made with spinach but people add a wide variety of ingredients. the ones with cheese tend to have zaatar leaves in them, which is a herb that is halfway between thyme, oregano and marjoram. you can find it in dried form at most middle eastern shops.

[baroness]

the ones with cheese tend to have zaatar leaves in them, which is a herb that is halfway between thyme, oregano and marjoram. you can find it in dried form at most middle eastern shops.

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Is zaatar different than zatar/zahtar, which is usually a blend of sumac, thyme, sesame seeds, and salt?

[maher]

in this case yes it is. zaatar the blend uses zaatar leaves in dried form with the spices as you mention. however the zaatar you use in the fatayer is the leaves alone, preferably in their fresh form, but also useable dried. in most cookbooks thyme is used as a substitute but zaatar leaves are not the same thyme used in western cooking, it is really (in my opinion) best approximated with a mix of thyme, oregano and marjoram since its taste is sort of a mix of the three.