Crustless Spanokopita

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped scallions
1 teaspoon minced garlic
16 ounces spinach leaves, rinsed and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 cup liquid egg substitute (or 1 large egg, beaten)
1/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 cup crumbled reduced fat feta cheese
1 teaspoon dried oregano

Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray a small baking dish with cooking spray.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion, scallions and garlic and saute until soft, about 2 minutes. Stir in the spinach, parsley and lemon juice. Continue to saute until the spinach is limp and all the liquid is absorbed, about 2 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together the egg substitute, ricotta, feta and oregano. Stir in the spinach mixture. Pour it all into the prepared backing dish. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until bubbly. Serve hot as a side dish or as a dip with pita crisps, crackers, or breadsticks.

Persian Spinach with Yogurt

2 tbl pine nuts
2 tsp butter
1 10-oz package fresh spinach, chopped
1-2 tbl water or broth as needed
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium high heat. Add the pine nuts and stir until lightly toasted. Watch carefully because they burn easily. Remove the pine nuts and set aside.

Melt the butter in the skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook 5 min., until the onion is tender. Add the spinach and salt, cook and stir, adding water or broth if needed to keep it from sticking to the skillet. When spinach is wilted and soft but still bright green, remove the skillet from the heat. Let cool to room temperature.

Combine the spinach mixture with the pine nuts, yogurt, pepper and cinnamon. Refrigerate 30 min. before serving

3-4 servings as a side dish
or serve as a dip with pita chips