There’s always a slice of pie on My Greek Table

If you're looking for pie heaven, Diane Kochilas knows where it is.

Filo pie with zucchini, feta and mint. Credit: My Greek Table

— Travel Greece in My Greek Table with Diane Kochilas streaming at SBS On Demand. —

In a remote northwestern corner of Greece is an area that Diane Kochilas calls “pie heaven”: the region of Epirus, home to “some of the greatest savoury pies in all of Greece” (and some of the country’s best baklava, too, she says).

And her visits there, shared in various episodes of her popular TV series My Greek Table, showcase some truly wonderful Greek pies, in all their rolled, folded, filled, crunchy, flaky golden glory – including a cheese pie, baked in embers, that embodies the shepherding traditions that are still strong in the area.

Visiting a shepherding family in the mountains, Kochilas is in paradise as she joins a local woman, Artemis, who shows her how she makes her own filo (phyllo) pastry, and then layers the thin, hand-rolled sheets of pastry with feta, making big round pie that’s then cooked in embers under a metal dome.

“This ancient way of baking over hot coals using a copper or steel dome as a makeshift portable oven is something that the shepherds of Epirus have been doing for hundreds of years, if not longer. The dome is called a gastro, and it is part of their panoply of kitchen equipment as they travel up and down the mountains from summer to winter abodes, carrying many of their worldly possessions with them. Amazingly, this is still a living tradition in Greece, if no longer on foot, then certainly by a pickup truck,” Kochilas says.

When Kochilas bites into a slice of still-hot feta pie, she says it’s “almost like I can taste everything that’s growing around me in the cheese itself”. (Luckily for those of us who can’t build a fire to cook our pies, she’s come up with a home kitchen version of the pie she saw being made in the Pindus mountains).

Diane Kochilas enjoys a spankopita in Greece. Credit: My Greek Table

Unsurprisingly, given how popular they are in Greek cooking, pies appear a lot in My Greek Table. In the ‘Pie Heaven’ episode of season 4, where she had that envy-inducing pie-making lesson, she cooks up two recipes inspired by her visits to Epirus: a pleated feta pie (“If there was a fluffy cloud that tasted like feta cheese, this would be it”) and a chicken and herb pie that’s a great way of using up cooked chicken. Other episodes in season 4 include a zucchini filo pie, and a simple skillet feta pie that you can whip up for a snack or quick lunch, while past seasons have given us delicious dishes such as “messy orange pie” and of course a classic spanakopita with homemade homemade filo pastry.

Here, we’ve rounded up some of the wonderful Greek pie recipes Kochilas shares in My Greek Table.

Pleated filo pie with feta

This 'crinkle pie' is an easy way to make a tyropita (Greek cheese pie). "If there was a fluffy cloud that tasted like feta cheese, this would be it," says Kochilas. "It's really beautiful, creamy – the briny flavour of the sheep's milk feta comes through. It’s also crispy and crinkly. So there’s a lot of texture, a lot of back and forth between crispy and soft and fluffy. This is a total winner and it’s really easy to make."

Pleated filo pie with feta Credit: My Greek Table

Feta cheese pie (not) baked in embers

“You know that expression pie heaven? That was born in Epirus for sure,” Kochilas says, and if you watch her lesson in filo making and cheese pie baking, it's easy to agree. Her version of that pie, converted from the embers to a home oven, features the same layers of homemade pastry and delicious Greek feta.

Feta cheese pie from Greece Credit: My Greek Table

Chicken filo pie with two cheeses and herbs

This pie, made with purchased filo, is a great way to use up leftover cooked chicken. Kochilas says you can also change up the herbs to use what you have on hand.

Chicken filo pie with two cheeses and herbs. Credit: My Greek Table

Cephalonia three-meat pie (Kefalonitiki kreatopita)

From season 3 of My Greek Table, this meat and filo pie is a popular dish from the Ionian island of Cephalonia. The filling is rich and savoury, with tomato, garlic and warm spices.

Cephalonia three-meat pie. Credit: My Greek Table

Filo pie with zucchini, feta and mint

When zucchini is in season, this filo pie is a great way to use it up. It features two kinds of cheese, yoghurt, and mint, and is made with purchased filo.

Filo pie with zucchini, feta and mint. Credit: My Greek Table

Messy orange pie

Harking back to the very first season of My Greek Table, this sweet pie, with a sweet yoghurt, egg and orange filling, has a sweet orange syrup poured over it after baking, creating a rich, delicious dessert.

Messy orange pie Credit: My Greek Table

Classic spanakopita (spinach pie)

This version of spanakopita, which Kochilas shared in the first season on My Greek Table, uses homemade pastry for added richness, but you could also use store-bought filo. It's filled with a rich mix of onion, feta, dill, mint and parsley.

Classic Spanakopita. Credit: My Greek Table

You can read more about Diane Kochilas' love of Greek pies on her website, including this article about Greek cheese pies and another article about all kinds of Mediterranean filo (phyllo) pies. Her online cooking classes also include one on making your own filo.