Spinach Pie

One of my favorite meatless dishes is spinach pie.  I first had it about 15 years ago at a friend’s house.  I was not at all convinced I was going to like it since I don’t like spinach as a rule.  But, I ate it to be polite and was pleasantly surprised.  I have made a few modifications to the recipe since the original was a little bland for my taste.  My daughter and her friend just love it.  I made it one Thanksgiving since I had a friend who is a vegetarian coming over to join us for the meal.  I had to make sure that the girls (who were 8 or 9 at the time) didn’t eat all the spinach pie before my friend got to serve herself!  My son isn’t so thrilled, so I think I might make homemade pizza rolls with him on the day I make spinach pie this week.  That should keep him happy.

Spinach pie

1 frozen deep dish pie crust

1 tsp butter

1 pound spinach stemmed and finely chopped (frozen is OK)

1 pound ricotta cheese

3 Tbsp flour

1 dash nutmeg

1 cup minced onion

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp basil

2-3 beaten eggs

1/2 cup grated sharp cheese

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Preheat oven to 375.

Melt butter in skillet and saute onion for five minutes.

Add spinach, salt, pepper and basil.  Cook until spinach is wilted and remove from heat.

Combine all filling ingredients and mix well.

Spread into unbaked pie shell.

Bake 40-45 minutes until firm to touch at center.

 

Hope you enjoy!!  This is really nice served with some soup or with some fresh bread or rolls.  Check out Tempt My Tummy Tuesday and I Am Blissfully Domestic for more great ideas.

P.S. Yes, I know I should post something Irish today, particularly since I am Irish, but the fact is that I don’t actually like many traditional Irish foods like corned beef or cabbage, and I haven’t gotten around to making Irish stew.  So, spinach pie it is!