Vegan or Vegetarian Spanakopita

A classic vegetarian recipe from Greece: rich and delicious spinach-cheese pie.

Yield	8 servings
Time	1½ hours
Tools	large saucepan or Dutch oven wooden spoon 9x13-inch baking pan, oiled brush
Ingredients	½ c olive oil 2 c onion, minced ¼ t salt 1 t basil 1 t oregano 2½ pounds fresh spinach, cleaned and de-stemmed 5 cloves garlic, minced 3 T flour For Vegans: 2 lbs firm tofu For Regular Vegetarians: 1 pound feta cheese, crumbled and 1 cup reduced fat ricotta or cottage cheese 1 T black pepper 1 pound filo pastry leaves
Directions	Preheat oven to 375º. Sauté onion, salt, basil, and oregano in 2 T oil for 5 minutes. Add spinach and cook over high heat for at least 5 minutes, until spinach becomes limp. Turn down to medium, stir in garlic and flour, and cook for another 2 or 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese and pepper. Taste and add more salt and pepper as desired. Lay out a sheet of filo in the baking dish (it will overlap the sides). Brush with oil, lay another on top, brush with oil, and repeat for a total of 8 sheets. Spread half of the spinach mixture over the dough. Lay out another 8 sheets of filo as above. Spread the rest of the spinach on top, then lay out the rest of the filo. Brush the top with oil and tuck the filo sheets into the pan. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes, until golden-brown and crispy.