Fresh Spinach & Basil Pie

Submitted by Scrodzilla

"An easy, slightly different (and pretty darn amazing, if I do say so myself) take on a classic dish. If you don't absolutely love this, you can come over and poke me in the eye."

 

• Ready In: 1hr
• Ingredients: 12
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• 2 (9 inch) frozen deep dish pie shell (or homemade crusts, if you're feeling bold and time is on your side!)
• 15 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese
• 3 large eggs
• 1 egg white
• 2 cups pre-shredded mozzarella cheese
• 6 -8 ounces fresh spinach leaves, chopped (uncooked)
• 1 small vidalia onion, finely chopped
• 1 large tomatoes, diced
• 3 -4 ounces fresh basil leaves, chopped (no cheating by using dried basil!!!)
• 2 -3 dashes salt
• 2 -3 dashes black pepper
• 1 pinch garlic powder (to taste)

directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese, 1 cup shredded mozzerella and 3 eggs. Mix well!
3. Stir in chopped spinach, onion, tomato, salt, spices and fresh basil.
4. Sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella into one 9" pie crust, then fill with cheese/spinach/egg, etc. mixture. There may be some left over -- do not overfill!
5. Top with remaining 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella.
6. Give yourself a pat on the back -- you're doing okay!
7. Carefully place remaining (thawed and flattened) frozen pie crust on top and pinch edges with a fork. Remember to cut a few slits in the top crust or your pie will explode!
8. Place on the middle rack of your nicely pre-heated oven and let it hang out for about 30 minutes. When the half-hour is up, pull the little guy out and brush egg white on the top surface (this will not only make your pie nice and shiny, but also very happy).
9. Pop back in the oven for 10-15 minutes until the top is a nice golden brown.
10. Let cool for about 10 minutes before serving.
11. Enjoy!
12. note: This recipe happens to be vegetarian, but I'm certain it would be delicious with some sausage in the mix. Feel free to experiment!

Reviews

[spiritussancto]

i had to use frozen spinach as it's all i could get and used a small red onion since it's what i had. i also skipped the top crust, not only because i didn't have two but because i wanted to cut some fat and carbs. only issue with that theory was that it's a TON of filling for a single crust pie so i used a couple small quiche molds for the extra and topped it all with mozza. just cooked uncovered for 40 min, the ones without the crusts bubbled over a little bit but the main one didn't (odd). th bottom crust didn't cook very well and it didn't really set properly. perhaps if i used a dryer ricotta or added a bit of corn starch it would firm up. could be a result of using frozen spinach. also think i should have pre-cooked the crust at least halfway and maybe fried the onion. very fresh tasting but also kinda runny. not worth a poke in the eye but i think it needs some twiquing. also think i could add some vegetarian ham to good results.