Рецепт Mediterranean Monday – Savory Squash Pie
Filed in Mediterranean Food on January 20, 2014 with no comments
It’s Greek Week here at Hestia’s Kitchen! That means it’s Greek week in my own personal kitchen too. We started it off on Saturday with a beautiful loaf of homemade Greek Country Bread and a big bowl of lentil soup. Last night it was this moist winter squash pie tucked into phyllo dough.
It’s easier to eat the Mediterranean way during the summer, when the garden is full of the fresh herbs and vegetables that make up the majority of the Mediterranean diet. But they have winter in that part of the world too. Winter squash, or pumpkin, is especially popular in Greek cuisine. Here it is mixed with Feta and leeks. This pie makes good use of a nutritious vegetable found locally all winter long. Serve with salad for a nice light meal. This recipe is adapted from one found in Mediterranean Harvest by Martha Rose Shulman, one of my absolutely favorite cookbooks.
Recipe: Serves 3 or 4
- 1 1/2 lbs. winter squash, about 1 1/2 cups mashed
- 1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
- 1 tsp dried mint
- 1/2 cup crumbled Feta cheese
- 1 small leek
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 egg
- 12 sheets commercial phyllo dough
- olive oil
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and seed winter squash. Cut into 1 inch pieces. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake in oven for about 30 minutes, or until squash is tender. Remove from oven and cool. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees.
In a large bowl, mash cooked squash. Add parsley, mint, and Feta. Stir to combine.
Wash and chop the white and light green parts of the leek. Peel and mince the garlic. Heat a little olive oil (about 2 tsp) in a small frying pan. Add the chopped leek and garlic. Cook until just tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add to the squash mixture.
Grease an 8 inch cake pan. Layer 7 sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each with olive oil, and overlapping each sheet until the entire cake pan is covered.
Stir a beaten egg into the squash mixture. Spread mixture over the phyllo in the pan. Cover with 5 sheets of phyllo dough, once again brushing each sheet with olive oil. Tuck the edges into the side of the pan. Make a few cuts in the top with a knife.
Bake for about 45 minutes, or until the pie is golden brown. Remove from oven and serve warm or at room temperature.
Note: This recipe will use less than one one package of commercial phyllo dough. Save the remainder for another pie or freeze for future use.
Do you have a favorite wintertime Greek recipe? Please share!
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About the Author
Renee Pottle, an author and heart-healthy educator, loves to explore and write about the Mediterranean Diet. She blogs at SeedToPantry.com and HestiasKitchen.com.