Rich Spinach Pie
Instructions:
- This is a wonderful, nearly decadent side dish for an elegant
dinner or a fancy luncheon or brunch. You can
make it even more substantial by adding up to a cup
of cooked meat or seafood to the custard: Shredded
chicken, chopped shrimp or bacon, and crumbled
sausage or ground beef are all good. To make a faster version,
skip the crust and just bake the custard in a shallow
baking dish or pie plate.
- 1 recipe Savory Piecrust
prebaked - Salt
- 2 pounds spinach, trimmed of thick stems and well washed
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup cream, half-and-half, or milk
- 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs, preferably fresh
- 2 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil
- Heat the oven to 375 F. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Add the spinach and onion and cook for just about a minute, until the spinach wilts. Drain thoroughly and cool a bit, then squeeze out as much of the water as you can and chop it.
- Put the spinach and onion in a bowl with the garlic, eggs, cream, and about half the Parmesan. Mix well, then add salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the spinach mixture into the prepared piecrust, then top with more Parmesan, and then the bread crumbs. Dot with butter or drizzle with oil. Bake until the mixture is hot and set and the top is brown, about 20 minutes (if the top threatens to scorch before the mixture is set, lower the heat a bit). Serve hot, warm, or at room temperature.
- Spinach-Feta Pie.
- Substitute crumbled feta cheese for the Parmesan; mix all the feta into the spinach mixture in Step 2.