Signs of Spring: Greek Hand Pies

When the mint, oregano and fennel start to put out fresh new growth about now, I start thinking about Greek hand pies, or saiti. The recipe came from Food & Wine Magazine, attributed to chef Jacques Pepin, who apparently discovered them on a tour of Greece, where folks were making use of what was close at hand to create satisfying, delicious, nourishing meals. I've added one or two modifications to suit local tastes. The food fetishists of course can obsess over the copious green things and make it all out of kale if they like, but it’s really just good wholesome food that anyone can learn to make.

The beauty of the hand pie is that it makes use of greens that might be a little too coarse or strongly-flavored for salad or lighter fare, using enough fresh herbs to dominate the flavor profile in the pies. I’ve put dandelions, chard, kale, dock, plantain, (not the fruit, the “weed”), spinach and a few other greens in them.

They work with most anything you might have on hand or be able to procure easily—to buy all the vegetables and herbs would probably run about $10 in the stores I frequent---but any gardener or forager should be able to come up with acceptable substitutes at low or no cost. I wouldn't recommend changing the exquisite balance of herbs, however.

The dough involves a little kneading and some resting time, but is actually quite simple to make and easy to work with.

The basic recipe for dough:

2/14 cups flour (white is the official style but whole wheat blended in adds texture and nutritional value)

¾ tsp salt

¾ cup water

¼ cup olive oil

1 TBSP red wine vinegar

Mix all the ingredients well in a bowl, kneading the resulting ball on a floured board briefly. I’ve noticed the whole wheat version doesn’t seem to form a tight ball, more of a layered ball, but this doesn’t affect the final product in any way. Don’t overwork it. Once it is completely mixed and lightly kneaded, cover it with plastic wrap (or shove it into a recycled produce bag) and let it sit in the fridge while you prepare the filling.

That requires:

½ cup mint

¼ cup fennel

¼ cup oregano

½ cup chopped spring onions

1 ½ pounds greens

Pinch of salt

Pinch of pepper

1/4 cup grated parmesan

¼ cup crumbled feta

1 egg

1 TBSP lemon juice

Brown the onions in a tablespoon or so of olive oil, then add the finely chopped and rinsed herbs all together. When this happens, the house begins to smell strongly of herbs, in a very appetizing way. People have been known to “wander by” just when I’ve opened a window to let some of the aroma out.

Once the greens, and herbs are cooked down and well blended in your biggest skillet, let them cool in the fridge for a few moments.

The cooled filling is finished with a little salt and pepper, the grated parmesan and crumbled feta, and the egg. Blend it all very well in a large bowl. A squeeze of lemon juice keeps everything fresher and greener at this point, and helps with the flavor.

By the time I’ve gathered, cleaned and cooked the greens and herbs, it’s time to fetch the dough.

The ball should be divided into even portions; either four or eight for this amount of dough works well.

Each ball is then worked with a rolling pin, on a floured board, to the roundest shape possible, about 1/8 inch thick. This step tends to repair the seams and fissures, leaving a tidy round disc of dough that can be easily stacked without sticking or tearing. It’s pleasant to feel the elasticity and toughness the dough develops, which is important for the next step:

The filling should cover half the disc, and needs to be pressed down flat and even once the clean half is folded over the filling. Use a fork to press the loose edges together, and don’t be afraid to press down on the high spots to even the filling out. The filling layer should end up slightly thicker than the two layers of dough. You’ll end up with semi-circles of filled dough that can be stored in a fridge until you’re ready to cook, or cooked right away.

Get some vegetable oil about medium hot—it should sizzle but not smoke.

The pies need only about two minutes per side to be fully cooked. The dough will develop blisters that let you know when it’s ready to turn, and to remove from heat to a paper towel which will absorb any extra oil.

I also chop some garlic and mint very fine and make a little sauce with lemon juice and yogurt to spread over the top, although they taste great just the way they come out of the pan.

The crunch is definitely improved by substituting some whole wheat flour. I’ve also made them with gluten-free flour composed of chickpeas and rice flour, but it was much harder to deal with and was not resilient when it was time to try and even out the filling. If you need to go gluten-free, this is probably not your recipe, unless you’re willing to overlook a few cracks and spilled filling.

Serve hot for best results.

#saiti #herbs #greens #JacquesPepin