Spinach Ricotta Pie

The Moosewood Cookbook is one of the first vegetarian books I bought, and that was MANY years ago. It has certainly stood the test of time because it is still one of my favorites. None of the recipes are very difficult, and they all have the homey comfort food appeal.

Over the weekend I made the Spinach Ricotta Pie. I didn't have super high hopes for this recipe as I thought it might be a bit too egg-y for me, but I knew that Dave would love it. I was so pleasantly surprised when I tasted it--it was really very good and I couldn't even notice the eggs. Dave of course adored it.

When I made the tart I had to improvise a bit. I doubled the recipe since I wanted leftovers for lunches. I also used puff pastry as the base, and I used Parmigiano Reggiano instead of cheddar. Thankfully, all the changes worked out well--the crust was nicely browned and crispy, and the filling came together perfectly without being super heavy or even greasy from the cheese.

The pie turned out to be another fantastic Moosewood recipe.

Spinach Ricotta Pie

The Crust:
6 Tbs. butter/margarine, cut into small pieces
1 1/2 cups flour
About 4 Tbs. cold water, milk, or buttermilk

The Filling:
1 tsp. butter/margarine
1 cup minced onion
1 lb. spinach, stemmed and finely chopped ( or you can use very well drained defrosted frozen spinach)
1/2 tsp. salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 tsp. basil
1 lb. ricotta cheese
2 or 3 beaten eggs
3 Tbs. flour
1/2 cup packed grated sharp cheese of your choice
a dash of nutmeg

Optional topping:
1 cup sour cream (may be low fat), lightly beaten
paprika

Directions
Use a pastry cutter, two forks, or a food processor to cut together the butter and flour until the mixture is uniformly blended and resembles coarse cornmeal.

Add just enough liquid (water, milk, or buttermilk) to hold the dough together. Roll out the dough and form a crust in a 9-or-10 inch pie pan. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 F. Melt the butter/margarine in a medium-sized skillet, add the onion, and saute for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add spinach, salt, pepper and basil, and cook, stirring, over medium-high heat until the spinach is wilted. Remove from heat.

Combine all filling ingredients in a large bowl, and mix well. Spread into the unbaked pie shell. For an extra rich pie, top with sour cream, spread to the edges of the crust. Dust generously with paprika.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes, or until firm to the touch at the center. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.