This Spinach, Feta and Artichoke Matzo Mina is a Greek-style Sephardic matzo spinach pie. It’s one of my favorite vegetarian Passover Seder entrees, because it’s so flavorful. It’s also kosher for Passover! I’ve tried so many different versions of spinach matzo pie through the years, but this one tops them all.
In recent years we’ve hosted several meatless Seders due to our personal dietary preferences. The matzo mina is a wonderful and satisfying entree– a spinach matzo pie of sorts. Or perhaps you might think of it as Passover spanakopita. However you wish to describe it, this spinach matzo mina is a delightful way to celebrate the Passover season.
What is a Matzo Mina?
A matzo mina is a Sephardic Jewish layered pie, in which matzos are substituted for noodles. The concept is somewhat similar to a matzo lasagna or a matzo casserole. Minas are made with meat or meatless, but they never combine both meat and dairy. This is to uphold the kosher tradition of separating dairy and meat.
The matzo mina presented here is vegetarian. It was inspired by my friend Deena Prichep, who writes for NPR. Deena and I met at a conference in Portland a few years ago. She wrote this wonderful article on minas back in 2011, and I just happened to come across it recently.
I’ve made many variations on the matzo mina over the years, but one of Deena’s recipes intrigued me. The spinach, feta and dill filling reminded me of spanakopita, which contains some of my favorite Mediterranean flavors.
Why is Matzo Used for Passover?
Matzo is used symbolically for the Passover holiday due to a restriction on chametz (leavened grains and other ingredients that are not considered kosher for Pesach). Therefore, creative dishes featuring matzo have evolved and thrived throughout the generations.
There are several versions on the spinach-cheese matzo mina out there, but this one is undeniably Greek inspired. Using Deena’s recipe as a base, I added sautéed artichokes and lemon zest to the filling. I also threw in some crushed red pepper flakes (you know I love my spice).
How Do You Make a Spinach Matzo Pie Pretty?
In the past I’ve had trouble making my matzo minas look pretty. The top layer of matzo often shrinks in the oven, making the resulting pie look somewhat unattractive. I’ve solved this by cutting the softened matzo into smaller pieces and laying it like shingles on top of the pie.
The resulting matzo mina is very pretty and off-the-charts delicious. I think you’ll agree, this would make a smashing vegetarian entree or dairy side at the Passover Seder meal. It would also make a terrific meal for Meatless Monday during the week of Passover (or anytime of the year, really– it’s that good). Thank you for the inspiration, Deena!
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Spinach, Feta and Artichoke Matzo Mina
Ingredients
- 6 sheets matzo more or less
- 2 cups frozen or canned artichoke hearts plain, unmarinated
- 2 cups lowfat cottage cheese
- 8 ounces crumbled feta cheese (goat or sheep milk feta is best) – more or less, see note below
- 5 ounces fresh spinach roughly chopped
- 3 large eggs divded
- 2 scallions chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh dill chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- Salt to taste (as needed)
NOTES
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9×9 square baking dish. If the artichoke hearts are whole, halve them. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium/high heat. Sauté the artichokes hearts until browned, then remove from heat and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine cottage cheese, spinach, scallions, dill, lemon zest, and crushed red pepper. Crumble feta cheese in slowly, a handful at a time, tasting as you go– the filling should be creamy and tasty with a hint of salt and tang. Fetas vary in saltiness level, I sometimes use the whole amount listed in the ingredients– other times, I only add half. You don’t want to add too much and risk an over-salty dish. If you add all the feta and it’s not salty enough, add more salt to taste. Once filling has a good flavor balance, beat two of the eggs and stir those in as well. Mix until well combined.
- Soften your matzo by placing each sheet in a dish of water until it just begins to soften, but does not become mushy.
- Place the softened matzo on a dish towel for 5 minutes, then check to make sure that it is slightly bendable. If not, you may need to soak it a little longer.
- Place a sheet of matzo into the bottom of your prepared baking dish. Fill in any gaps around the edges with smaller pieces of matzo. You can break the smaller pieces of matzo, or use a knife to slice them more evenly.
- Top the matzo with half of the cheese filling and half of the sautéed artichoke hearts.
- Repeat with another layer of matzo, the remaining cheese filling and the remaining artichoke hearts. For the top layer, to make a prettier presentation I cut the matzo into smaller squares and overlap them slightly in a shingle pattern. You can always go the simpler route by using a single sheet of matzo and filling in the gaps with smaller pieces, but keep in mind that it does shrink up a bit while baking and you may be left with a few small gaps that aren’t covered by matzo after baking.
- Brush the top of the matzo with remaining beaten egg. Be sure that it doesn’t pool heavily in any areas.
- Bake for 45 minutes or until the top layer is golden brown.
- Serve warm.
Nutrition
Hi Tori!! Do you think I could make this 1 day in advance? Thanks, I love your recipes.
Hi Natasha – absolutely, it keeps well. Keep it refrigerated for food safety, and rewarm in a 350 degree F oven for best flavor. 🙂 Enjoy!
I tried this recipe tonight, it is delicious. I am so grateful I stumbled on this website, I can’t wait to try some more recipes, thank you.
Last year I had never heard of a Matzo Mina before, when one of my Facebook friends posted a link to this recipe. It looked interesting, so I made this for Passover last year — and again this year. My family has lots of food allergies, so I used gluten-free matzo (hard to find, but, if you need it, a wonderful thing!) and I replaced the cheeses with a tofu mixture, to make it dairy-free. Both years it came out absolutely amazing!!!! This is far and away the best Passover main dish that I have ever made. Thank you very much for the recipe!!
Can you make this dish ahead of time?
Yes it can, this dish reheats very well. Enjoy!
I could not find artichokes, so I used fresh asparagus, cut them up into bit size and mixed into the cheese mixture, it tasted great.
Great modification Esther. Glad you enjoyed!
This is great! I’m Greek and love incorporating Greek food into our Jewish traditions. I make spanakopita frequently, although we don’t usually use artichokes. What a nice addition to our Pesach recipes!
If I could give this 6 stars I would! This was so delicious! My father in law, who has never had an artichoke before absolutely loved it as well. This is a fantastic recipe thank you for sharing it! Shalom
It looks like 3 layers of matzah, using the 6?
Barbara, each layer takes a little more than 1 full matzo to cover it. You need to cut a second matzo down and add it to each layer to fully cover.
Sounds wonderful.
This sounds really great and I can’t wait to try it. I do have a question. My daughter is vegan and does not eat eggs. What can I use as a substitution? Thanks
Hi Dotty, in this recipe you could probably just leave the eggs out. I do have a tutorial for replacing eggs with chia or flax seeds, but it may not work for you depending on your dietary restrictions for Passover: https://toriavey.com/how-to/how-to-make-a-vegan-egg-substitute/ Trouble is, this recipe has lots of dairy in it. If your daughter is vegan she likely doesn’t eat cheese. You may want to check out my vegan Passover recipe roundup here: https://toriavey.com/toris-kitchen/vegan-recipes-for-passover/
Miriam Gutleizer
Do you sautee the fresh spinach first? Do you think it would taste okay with frozen spinach?
No, the spinach is roughly chopped, not sauteed. Frozen spinach will work fine, but you’ll need to thaw it first and squeeze out the excess water before stirring it into the cheese first.
Amazing!
I must make this sounds wonderful
This recipe sounds wonderful. I am vegetarian but I often find vegetarian recipes are high in calories and I am trying to lose weight. What would
you estimate the calories count is on the spinach, feta, artichoke Matzo Mina recipe?
Heidi, I do not calculate calories for my recipes but you can easily plug this into a calorie calculator online. To save some calories use lowfat cottage cheese, light feta cheese, and egg whites instead of eggs (use the whole egg for brushing to get that golden color, but 3 egg whites can be subbed for the two eggs in the filling).
Melissa La Love
I eat alot of Greek food so this will be special to make.
This for sure will be served the second night in my house
Thanks a million for sharing
Can this be made the day before?
Hi Renee– yes, you can make this a day ahead. Rebake it to warm through and crisp it up a bit the next day.
Yumm