spanikopita (spinach pie)

hi everyone and happy new year!!

i had a 4 x 5 inch piece of spanikopita for dinner tonight, and i have no idea how to log it. it seems all of the foods go by weight or serving size - but i don't know how much my dinner weighed. :(

 can anyone help me log this please?

 thank you!

How deep was it? I'd personally look at something more common, like a blueberry pie, to figure out the weight. (I tried quiches and didn't find anything that went by measurable size).

Figure out the volume of what you ate. Then try and compare it to a blueberry pie size (those are findable in inch measurements). Then look at how many g that translated to, and enter in that weight for a spinach pie.

Does that make sense? Probably not very accurate, but that's what I would do in your situation. Then again, I have no idea what a spinach pie is, so you may want to look at other foods to compare it to.

Or try googling it.

well spanikopita is an entree, so i don't think blueberry pie is close :D it's pretty unique, so i really don't know what to compare it too - but if i knew that would be a great idea. 

 for anyone else, it was about an inch deep. so 20" square. geez that sounds like alot...

I think hello_sunshine only meant for you to use the weight of blueberry pie as a comparison, not the calories.  Regardless of whether it's an entree or a dessert, I imagine the weights of pies would be pretty similar.

yeah, im just thinking that the filo dough doesnt weigh the same as pie dough cuz its flaky and in layers. 

I've had a problem logging spanakopita before - because it can come in many forms (compact parcels vs big pies or containing cottage cheese and egg or feta and spinach etc).

To be honest the filo is a killer on the calories and unless you know what's in it you can't acurately guess anyway. In the past I have put mine down as:

1x full pie or 3x 4-inch triangles: ~550 cals

I buy a spanakopita pie from Trader Joe that is very low in fat and calories.  It has Spinach and feta cheese.  For a 1/4 of the pie (170g) about a 4.5"x 2.5"  piece it has 240 calories, 4g fat, 37g carb, 5g fiber, 13g protein.  I don't know if yours was the same, but I thought it might help.  Also, it's just a great meal and healthy!

The recipe for Spanakopita that my husband's father's mother used calls for: 

 One large onion that is chopped (low calories - hardly worth counting since the entire dish measures 9x9, and that means a piece 3"(x) 4.5" would result in six servings.

You put in 2 cloves of minced garlic (good for you, and no calories to count virtually).

You put in 2 pounds of chopped spinach (low calorie count here).

You put in 1/2 cup of fresh parsley (again, low calorie/no calorie).

You mix 2eggs (150 calories there) with 1/2 cup of Ricotta cheese (use low-fat), and check that on the container for calories.

The one cup of Feta cheese that goes in is also a lower-calorie cheese (distributed throughout the nine servings). You saute the onion and garlic - whatever you use in the way of oil, either just 'spray', and that cuts the calories.

When you layer it, you use 8 sheets of phyllo dough (this is where you need to get the information from the package again).

It basically winds up being much like a 'spinach lasagne' in the way you assemble it. You bake it for 30 to 40 minutes at 350 degees.

Probably the best way for you to get an accurate count is to make it yourself. If you use the Trader Joe product (which I have), it's tasty, but I don't get enough spinach and cheese in the pre-made type, so I make this dish myself.

You can freeze it - it keeps very well for a month without losing the quality of the phyllo dough.

Also: You can use this same recipe much like a quiche - bake the mixture in a pre-made pie dough (get the calories from the package), and it's also darned tasty.

If you eliminate the 'pastry' altogether, you get a super spinach casserole (I add mushrooms when I do this).