Roasted Butternut Squash and Feta Pie

Submitted by Daydream

"Sweet caramelized onions and roasted butternut squash (called butternut pumpkin in Aussieland), teamed with feta cheese and partially encased in pastry. The roasting intensifies the sweet flavor of the squash and gives it a creamy texture, nicely balanced by the feta. Reduce the amount of fresh herb if you prefer. Preparation time does not include cooling."

 

• Ready In: 1hr 20mins
• Ingredients: 9
• Serves: 4

ingredients

• 1 14 inch pie crust (I use Classic Pie Crust, Idiot Proof Step-By-Step Photo Tutorial or frozen store-bought shortcrust pastry)
• 23 ounces butternut squash, peeled and cubed,about 3/4 to 1 inch pieces
• 4 cloves garlic, unpeeled
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 medium red onions, sliced
• 4 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
• 3 teaspoons soft brown sugar
• 3 1⁄2 ounces feta cheese, broken into small pieces
• 1 1 tablespoon fresh sage or 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, your choice

directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F (200C), with rack positioned in the middle.
2. Place the squash and unpeeled garlic in a bowl, drizzle over 2 tablespoons olive oil, and mix well.
3. Transfer the squash and garlic to a baking tray lined with baking paper, and place in the oven.
4. Bake for 20 minutes, or until squash is just tender and starting to brown.
5. Place the squash in a large bowl, leave to cool, and reserve the garlic to one side.
6. While the squash is roasting, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, add the onions and cook stirring occasionally for 10 minutes.
7. Add the vinegar and sugar and continue to cook for a further 10 minutes, or until the onion caramelizes.
8. Remove from heat, add onions to the squash in the bowl, and allow to cool thoroughly.
9. Squeeze out the flesh from the reserved garlic, and add to the squash with the feta cheese and the herb of your choice.
10. Mix the squash, onion and feta mixture together gently, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
11. Place the pastry circle on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
12. Pile the filling on top of the pastry, leaving a 2 1/2 inch (6cm) border.
13. Fold the pastry edge up (overlapping as necessary) to partially cover the filling.
14. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes or until pastry is crisp and golden.
15. Cover the vegetables loosely with foil if they look to be over-browning.

Reviews

[Lalaloula]

WOW, wow, wow! This is super duper yummy! Made this for the family and everyone loved it! The filling is so tasty and so easy to make, too. I used this crust Recipe #267426 and made a free form rustic pie, which worked out beautifully.<br/>My only change was to use hokkaido squash and to reduce oil, sugar and vinegar a tad.<br/>THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing a real keeper with us, Daydream! Ill surely make this again and again.

 

[nice_n_tidy]

Easy to cook, filling and very tasty. As a vegetarian of 25 years, this was one of the nicest pies I have eaten. I used chopped, fresh thyme and sage in the pie, but also added sticks of fresh rosemary to the pan when roasting the pumpkin.<br/>I added toasted pine nuts to the pie mix to add a bit of texture and slightly increased the amount of roast garlic and feta. To make the pie, I rolled out a square of pastry, folding the corners into the centre to make a parcel. (Pie that looks like a Xmas present in the photos). Served it with roast potatoes and purple sprouting broccoli. YUM!

 

[averybird]

This pie was absolutely delicious! I used Kabocha squash and dried thyme but otherwise followed exactly. I used the same lovely pie crust as Lalaloula and found it was a bit too small to hold all the filling, but just served the rest on the side. Will be making this one often. Thank you, Daydream!

 

[Ginger Rose]

This was brilliant - I've made it twice now and both times it tasted really good. I omit the herbs but it still remains full of flavour. Thanks!

 

[Slains Girl]

I made this for the first time as a veggie dish to go with Christmas lunch and it received rave reviews. A few people have already asked me for the recipe! I found the caramelized onions a bit sweet, but that is probably because I used treacle sugar (it was all I had). Definitely a delicious dish - went superbly with the turkey and gammon. I will be making this one again very soon - thanks for sharing!