Spinach Cheese Triangles
I’ve been in an appetizer mood as New Year’s Eve approaches. I found myself searching cookbooks for fun new recipes. I love to eat appetizers, often preferring them to a regular meal, but if you search my blog, you’ll notice that I haven’t made many of them. I decided that needs to change and got started last night by making a new recipe that looked promising.
This recipe didn’t disappoint. These spinach cheese triangles are fairly easy to make, and they have that traditional appetizer feel to them. They’re hot and cheesy, with great flavor from the roasted red pepper. Plus all the spinach in them makes them seem healthy (just ignore all of the melted butter you brush both inside and outside of these delightful little triangles).
This was my first time working with phyllo dough and I definitely messed it up. Please learn from my mistakes. Thaw the dough in the refrigerator ahead of time. I expected it to be like puff pastry that just thawed quickly on the countertop. Imagine my surprise when I was greeted after work with a frozen roll of phyllo dough that showed no signs of quick thawing. Of course I was impatient and attempted to unroll it way too soon, resulting the mess you see above. Due to my torn phyllo sheets, the triangles themselves were sort of messy. Plus, at this point I was terribly impatient and made them way too big. But have confidence – despite all that, these tasted great and I would make them again. I’d recommend making these nice and small, and limiting the amount of filling you put inside. I think they’ll taste better with a smaller amount of filling. Good luck! And remember – even if you mess them up, they are still worth making 🙂
Spinach Cheese Triangles
Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1 package (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
1/3 cup chopped drained roasted red peppers
1/4 tsp garlic salt
6-8 sheets frozen phyllo, thawed
1/4 cup (half stick) melted butter
Directions:
Mix cream cheese, spinach, red peppers and garlic salt with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Lay 1 phyllo sheet on flat surface. Brush with some of the melted butter. Cut lengthwise into 4 (18 x 3 1/2 inch) strips. Spoon about 1 tablespoon of filling about 1 inch from one end of each strip. Fold the end over the filling at a 45-degree angle. Continue folding as you would fold a flag to form a triangle that encloses the filling. Repeat procedure with remaining phyllo sheets. Place triangles on cookie sheet and brush with melted butter. Bake at 375 for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown.
from Favorite Brand Name Best Loved Holiday Recipes