I am not Alexa, but based on what I have read, and on comments I get from everybody I have served it to, most people DO like them. I know that Alexa does prefer Spanakopita, but I don't. The spinach brownies are easier to eat. They don't crumble and make a mess like the spanakopita does. I can say, however, that the mini muffin tins brownies are not as good, cause you don't get a big enough cheesy bite. I agree with the sharp cheddar. That is what I always use for them.
Good luck with whatever you make!
Sherry

I used a medium cheddar. I'll make a home batch with a really sharp cheddar and see what I think. The mini muffins make a prettier plate. Feta seems like a natural flavor-wise but it wouldn't perform the same as a cheddar.

Well - when I made them and served them at home I found several discretely hidden in paper coctail napkins on the sides of peoples plates. I actually thought I had done something wrong with the recipe so I made them again and took them to a friends house. Again, the garbage was filled with half eaten bites that people were throwing away.

I don't have the recipe anymore (deleted long ago) so I can't tell you what ingredients (or combination) I felt didn't work.

I do make spanikopita using Chase's recipe and I never seem to have made enough. They go quickly and have a lovely contrast in texture and the flavor is wonderful! Maybe it is just that my palate prefers the feta/dill combination to whatever was in the brownies. Also, I don't find spanikopita that messy. Well, maybe a few crumbs from the phyllo on the serving platter but I've never heard anyone complain about it LOL!

I really wasn't trying to turn you off from making them, just expressing an opinion that peoples tastes are different.

Alexa

Barnmom,
I made them recently in mini muffin tins and because it was last minute I used what I had on hand, which was feta. I placed the feta in a mini chopper to a fine crumble to enable the cheese to be blended throughout, & added garlic. They were a big hit.

Lucy

I think if I made them and served them and people really spit them into their napkins, I would be a fool to make them again and serve them again to others so they too could hide them in potted plants and napkins and such. Uh huh.
I think, Alexa, that you expressed quite explicitly your opinion that other peples tastes are different.
I love Chases's Spanakopita, I just like these better and they are quick and easy. Perhaps you might ask others on the forum what they thought? I am going out of town, and that way if others "explicitly say what they think of them, and it, as well is as explicitly negative, at least I won't be around to see it.
Barnmom, good luck with whatever you make.
Sherry

People's tastes are different, and that's one of the things I love about Potlucks! it's pot luck!! When there are different and new things to try, I like it best. So, while everyone might not LOVE them, I think it's worth a try...

Now DH, on the other hand, wants the familiar... It's also good to know a little about how your friends tastes run... that directs me some when choosing for pot luck...

I haven't made the spinach brownies yet (I'm not particularly fond of spinach, and DH has a disorder with too much iron) so I can't weigh in on that... but I skip over the spanakopita at a party as well....

(I'm also an MLC virgin... calories!!)

Sherry -

I am going to chalk this up to you having a bad day or something. You are really going over the top defending these things. Someone asked my opinion and I expressed it. I don't care for them. Get over it! It is just a recipe!

Alexa

I prefer Spanikopita....well I prefer spanikopita to almost anything....but I also Loove the spincah brownies.
However I am not a fan of things baked in cupcake papers...I think they get dry and crusty.
If time isn't a factor I would always make the spanikopita....but the spinach brownies sure are easy.
I would bake a pan of them and if youw ant to serve them in cupcake papers....cut squares and put them in there....but I think they would dry out if baked in the papers.
Linda C

Agreed, we all have different tastes. I have a dear friend who eats out often. I just KNOW if she LOVES the food, I won't! And vice versa. I'm pretty sure she would love these made with mild cheddar. She likes simple comfort food without a big flavor punch. I love spanakopita but it is time consuming which is why Sherry's recipe is very appealing.

Linda, I was planning not to use papers, just nonstick mini muffin tins (I just bought some new ones) with a spray of Pam. Like I said, I'll make a half batch with a sharp cheddar and maybe some parmesan or romano and see what I think.

I'm tempted to add some dill and feta...

I've made them a couple times in minimuffin tins - no papers. And I baked them the longer time - instead of cutting it shorter (an accident on my part. The recipe says to cut baking to 18-20 min - instead of 30 - if using the mini muffins)

What I loved about them is the crispiness and how much of it you get with the muffin pan...the greasiness of the cheese helps crisp them up if you bake them a little longer...so there was no big "cheesiness" inside.

LOL! So another bit of evidence as to the difference in tastes!

Oh and they went over very well at the party I took them to.

I've made Sherry's spinach brownies a couple of times and I really like them. Ashley doesn't and that's fine, more for me. Of course, she likes Subway and spaghetti sauce from a jar, so what can I say, LOL.

I've only made them in a square pan, and I know some people who just detest spinach, so I don't serve these to those people. David won't even kiss Amanda if she eats one, because he says she TASTES like spinach.

I have also used Chase's spanakopita recipe recently because I had phyllo dough left from that mushroom tart. I didn't make the little bite sized ones because they were too time consuming for the time I had. I liked the spanakopita too, baked in that square pan.

It's a good thing we all have different tastes. I know I love the onion filling in my onion braid and make double. Sherry thinks it's too "slimy". I always double the lemon in Marilyn's lemon brownies, but I double the lemon in nearly everything lemon. I also made Marilyn's lemon cake roll for the Michigan Run and ended up throwing about half of it away, not because it wasn't good but because I just had too darned much food. I won't eat anything with olives in it and I believe you CAN have too much garlic. Oh, and I hate and detest the red sauce on pizza and I only eat spaghetti with red sauce about twice a year, when I can't weasel out of it. (shrug)

It's what makes the world go round. So, anyone want to discuss grits, or sugar in cornbread, or cinnamon rolls vs. sticky buns or miracle whip vs. mayo or canned soup?

Annie

Can someone post the spinach brownie reciope, please. I guess I joined this forum too late for it. I'd like to try it now that everyone is talking about it. I make spanikopita every now and then. It is a lot of work but always a big hit. I have to be in just the right frame of mind to deal with the filo, though. I have never had any left over and sometimes I purposely put them out last so they are not gone before the late-comers arrive.

I made these and my husband absolutely loved them (think I'll make some more for his lunches). I also made them for a party and some people liked them and some didn't, although that could have been my fault as they weren't room temp (they had just come from the fridge). They taste TOTALLY differant at room temp or heated as opposed to straight from the fridge. If I were you I would make them, and make sure you leave them out long enough to get to room temp. Also cutting them in smaller size pieces if you are not making them in mini muffin pans is good, because people are not wasting as much if they don't like them, and if they do they will go and get more! I don't think I have ever cooked anything for a party where every single person there loved everything, there is always one or two who find something not to like and there is nothing wrong with that.

Shelley

Here ya go....

Spinach Brownies -- sheshebop
1 pkg. (10 oz) frozen chopped spinach, thawed
16 oz. cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
4 T. butter, melted
1 cup milk
I also added 1/8 tsp nutmeg
Preheat oven to 350. Spray 8 x 12 baking pan with cooking spray.
Drain spinach in colander and squeeze out excess moisture. Combine cheese, spinach, and onion in large bowl. Mix. Stir salt and baking powder into flour and mix with the spinach. Mix eggs, butter, milk and stir into other ingredients. Pour into pan. Bake for 30 minutes

Both my DH and I love spanikopita, which I make on rare occasions, so I guess I will have to try the spinach brownies. When I first saw that title, I went HUH!!! I thought someone had combind chocolate and spinach. It could happen. I have a chocolate sauerkraut cake recipe which is great. Everyone loved it. I didn't tell them it had sauerkraut until after they ate it. Honest, it really was good.
Clare

Just to complicate things, here is another Spinach Square recipe. I've been making this one for over 25 years and it is always well received.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Spinach Squares
===============
These are really good. They are from a Woman's Day Home Entertainment Magazine from Dec. 1982.

2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen, chopped spinach
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
8 eggs beaten
10 to 12 soda crackers, crumbled (2/3 cup)
2 teaspoons herbs, (thyme, rosemary, dill)
1 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups grated cheddar cheese Parmesan cheese
paprika
. Thaw and drain spinach. In large skillet, heat oil. Saute spinach,
onion, garlic and parsley until lightly cooked. Add eggs, crackers,
seasonings and Cheddar cheese, mix together. Pour into a greased 8 1/4
X 13 1/2 inch baking dish. Sprinkle top with parmesan cheese and
paprika and bake at 325 for 45 minutes, or until knife inserted in
centre comes out clean. cut in small squares, about 1 3/4 inches. May
be served hot or cold. Makes 36 squares

Thanks, Ann. I think Sherry's recipe is a good, safe one. This one sounds good, too. The addition of herbs and Parmesan would pump up the flavor. I think my mistake was not using sharp cheddar. I asked my friend for whom I made Sherry's recipe what he thought, he confessed he thought they were bland but he likes strongly flavored food and has an adventuresome palate. He's fun to cook for! I left my stash of cardamom pods with him. He was quite enamored of the scent and flavor.

Yours has lots of eggs, is it more quiche-like?

No, I wouldn't call them really quiche like. The squares are firmer than quiche, probably because of the cracker crumbs. Not at all bland because of the herbs and the cheese.

Ann

Ann, is that 2 tsp each of thyme, rosemary and dill or total combined? Thanks.

Terrapots, 2 teaspoons total. Either/or a combination of herbs. And that is dried herbs. But I use fresh and never measure.

Ann