Macedonian green vegetable pie with mushrooms and walnuts

https://www.argiro.gr/recipe/makedoniki-chortopita-manitaria/

Ingredients

For the stuffing: 

500g fresh mushrooms
1kg spinach-swiss chard-dock
1 dried onion
1 bunch spring onion
½ bunch dill
½ bunch parsley
⅓ cup olive oil
1 cup walnuts, thinly chopped 

For the macedonian phyllo: 

4 cups flour
2 cups water
1 tbsp vinegar
½ cup vegetable cooking oil at room temperature
1 ½ tsp salt
a bit of flour for the phyllo spreading
½ cup olive oil for the coating

Preparation

For the macedonian phyllo: 

Add flour, water, vinegar and salt in a bowl. Knead till the dough gets smooth and pliable. Cover and let it rest for 30’. Roll into a long snake and split in 10 same-size pieces. Roll each piece into a thick phyllo, brushing butter before pressing two pieces together. This leaves us with five thick phyllos with butter between the layers. Place them on a tray, cover and put in the freezer for about 40’, till the butter freezes. 

On a floured surface, sprinkling more flour when necessary, spread each phyllo and roll it into the thinnest possible circular shape. Let the five thin phyllos dry. Don’t worry if they turn a bit crunchy, it’ll make the pie taste better. 

For the stuffing: 

Heat the olive oil in a pan over high heat. Sauté the mushrooms along with the onion for 5-6’, till the juices are absorbed. Add the green vegetables, spring onion, salt and pepper and let it rest for a few minutes, keeping the heat as is, till all the liquid evaporates. It’s very important to choose a spacy pan, be it a deep pan or a low pot. 

Let the stuffing cool. Optionally, pour it into a strainer to drain out any excess juices. Finally, add the herbs and walnuts and stir. 

Oil a big shallow oven pan. Spread one phyllo, slightly scrunched. Sprinkle with a bit of olive oil. Layer a second phyllo on top. Pour half of the stuffing. Cover with another phyllo, and pour the rest of the stuffing, after sprinkling with olive oil. Cover the pie with the remaining two phyllos, layering them in a pleated manner. Sprinkle olive oil between the two phyllos as well. 

Carve the pie, forming a 15cm diameter circle and slice rays from the center to the edge of the pie. Brush the rest of the olive oil all over the top phyllo layer and sprinkle a bit of water on top. 

Place the pie on the lower rack and bake in a preheated oven at 180ºC, using the heating elements. After 40’, turn off the top heating element and let it bake for another 20’ till the pie turns golden brown and can be removed from the pan.