Greek Spinach Pie

A spanikopita recipe taken from allrecipes.com we made at my parent's place in CT after New Year's. We followed the directions almost exactly and it turned out delicious. The original instructions are copied here, with some alterations and comments of our experiences interspersed.

• 3 T olive oil
• 1  large onion, chopped
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 lbs raw spinach, rinsed and chopped
• 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup crumbled feta cheese
• 8 sheets phyllo (fillo) dough
• olive oil for brushing

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9x13 inch baking dish.
   The original recipe calls for a 9x9 baking pan, but we didn't have one, so we went with a 9x13 pyrex dish. Worked fine.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion, green onion, and garlic until soft and lightly browned. Stir in spinach and parsley, and continue to saute until spinach is limp.
   In case it hasn't occurred to you already, like it didn't occur to me, 2 lbs of spinach is actually a very large volume of spinach. We used a 4" deep saute pan and ended up having to saute it in batches of 1/2 lb each and then push the wilted spinach aside for the next batch. It worked fine, but took quite a while to cook it all down. I would use a deeper stock pot next time so it can all get in there at once and then stir it frequently.
   Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
   Since the sauteing took so long I prepared the cheese mixture at the same time.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, ricotta, and feta. Stir in spinach mixture. Lay 1 sheet of phyllo dough in prepared baking dish, and brush lightly with olive oil. Lay another sheet of phyllo dough on top, brush with olive oil, and repeat process with two more sheets of phyllo. Cut phyllo dough if necessary to make single-thickness layers each iteration. Spread spinach and cheese mixture into pan and fold dough over any dough overhanging the side of the dish (we didn't have any overhanging). Layer remaining 4 layers of phyllo dough, brushing each with oil.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 40 minutes, until golden brown. Cut into squares and serve while hot.