Onion Tomato Pie - Week 37 Bonus

Simple garden ingredients make a great side pie!

Layers of vegetables, creamy mayo dressing with Parmesan cheese in a pie shell make this a fresh side pie.  

Onions typically find their way into many recipes, but this pie features it as its main ingredient. Onions have some significant health benefits, such as lowering blood pressure with its extra fiber and also  protection against cancer because of it phytochemicals elements. It doesn't like we can get enough vegetables in our diet, so this can be a nice addition to your meal to provide an extra vegetable.





Ingredients:

1 Pie crust, bottom only
3 large tomatoes, thinly sliced & drained
1 medium sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 cup chopped fresh basil
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup mayonnaise
3 oz. Shaved Parmesan cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste

Directions:
Sprinkle tomatoes with salt, and let drain. (Salting helps the tomatoes to “sweat” out some water.)

Prebake pie crust for 10 minutes at 350 degrees.

Mix shredded cheese, mayonnaise, and salt & pepper. -Stir until combined.

Layer the bottom of the pie crust with onion slices, reserving a handful for the top of pie.

Sprinkle half the basil on top of onions.

Layer the tomatoes on top.

Sprinkle the other half of basil on top of tomatoes.

Add the handful of onions on top.

Spread the cheese-mayo mix over the top.

Top it with the shaved Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 45 minutes at 375 degrees.

Let sit for 15 minutes before serving.

What ways do you introduce vegetables to your menu to keep things fresh and healthy?

Italian Spaghetti Squash Pie - Week 36 Bonus

Creative crusts can stretch the definition of pie.

Many have enjoyed  the tastiness of spaghetti pie. If you haven't tried it yet, here's a great basic recipe to try. This substitutes a vegetable for the pasta making it a great healthy dish to feed the family. It also utilizes fresh tomatoes to make it a late summer favorite to use some of you garden fresh tomatoes. You can substitute canned tomatoes or even a favorite pasta sauce if you prefer.

Spaghetti squash is also known as the vegetable spaghetti. You could substitute for pasta in many dishes. It take a little bit of prep to get it ready, but it is easy to do and adds variety to your menu.

This particular recipe actually uses half a squash and serves 6 (small servings), so if you like leftovers you should double up and fix both halves at the same time.

Ingredients:

1/2 medium uncooked spaghetti squash

1⁄2 pound pork sausage

1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic minced
5 tomatoes, peeled & diced (or 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes)
1 t. Italian seasoning (to taste)

12 oz. cottage cheese

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1 egg

1/2 cup shredded cheese, your choice

Directions:
Halve squash lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Place squash, cut side down and bake for 30-40 minutes at 350 degrees in a large baking dish.

Meanwhile brown sausage and drain. Add onion & garlic and saute until onion is tender. Stir in tomatoes and Italian seasoning. Season to taste and simmer for 10 minutes.

In a separate bowl, mix cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese, and egg together.

Remove squash from oven, and with a fork remove the squash in strands. Press any extra liquid from squash.

Arrange squash strands in a greased 9” pie plate. Spread cottage cheese mixture over squash. Pour tomato sausage sauce over cottage cheese mixture, and sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing into 6 slices.

What other ways would you like to serve spaghetti squash for your family?

Zucchini Onion Pie - Bonus Pie Week 27

Zucchini is super versatile, 

and this is a great way to enjoy this squash variety 

in a great side dish casserole pie.

I enjoy this time of year when gardeners have an excess of zucchini because there are so many tasty ways to enjoy it.  Fried zucchini was one of my favorite dishes until I made it myself and was horrified how much butter/oil it takes. I was surprised that this tasted a lot like the more indulgent zucchini dish. The next time, I'm going to swap out some of the flour for some cornmeal and see how it works out.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

1/4 c. shortening

2 t. baking powder

3 eggs

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup milk

1 garlic clove, minced

1 t. Italian seasoning

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. pepper

3 cups sliced zucchini

1 small onion, chopped

Directions:

In a small bowl, cut shortening into flour and baking powder, and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs, Parmesan cheese, oil, milk, garlic, and seasonings together. 

Stir in the zucchini, onion, and the flour mixture.

Pour into a greased 9” deep dish pie plate.

Bake for 25 to 35 minutes at 350 degrees or until lightly browned.

I don't have enough space in my city lot to grow zucchini, 

so I always appreciate the bounty of other people's gardens this time of year (Thanks Mom & Dad!)

What is your favorite homegrown produce out of the garden?

Cheeseburger Pie - Week 23 Bonus

Top this pie with your favorite cheeseburger topping to make a great meal.

Our bonus pie is an easy meal that can go from fridge to table in less than an hour. I recommend having shredded lettuce, pickles, ketchup and mustard on the table  for the family to dress up their own slice. 

Almost everyone enjoys a good cheeseburger, and the combinations are endless. 


Ingredients:
1 Pie Crust
1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped
3 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheddar
1 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper
1/2 t. Italian seasoning
4 slices American cheese (cut into strips)

Directions:
Brown ground beef, and drain. Add onion and cook until tender.
Combine eggs, milk, shredded cheese, and seasonings in a medium bowl. Add hamburger mixture. Spread on top of pie crust. 
Bake at 325 degrees for 30 minutes or until egg is set.
Place strips of American cheese in lattice formation. Bake another 3 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with cheeseburger condiments like ketchup, mustard and pickles, if you like!

What is your favorite burger topping? And can you imagine it on this pie?

I think the next time it should have a bacon lattice on top!

Chile Relleno Pie - Week 18 Bonus

I LOVE Cheese! And recently, I've discovered that Chile Relleno is one of my many Mexican dishes that I love! However, it is a dish that takes some planning to make, especially if you want to roast your own chiles.  The Pioneer Woman has a great how-to post on roasting your own chiles here.

Pick some large chile beauties to roast!

Place them on the top rack on broil to roast in the oven.

They are done in the oven when the skins are peeling.

After you've let them cool in a plastic bag,
you can peel them and remove the seeds.

I do admit that this bonus pie is a stretch to declare pie, but I found one chef that called this pie because of its crusty topping; so I went with it. I served this with grilled chicken breast, tortilla chips, and salsa. It made a delicious meal. 

The kitchen tip that I learned with this meal is:
"Use farm fresh eggs for quality egg white whipping."
I have always bought the regular grocery store eggs because that is readily available, but I had the opportunity to try some farm fresh eggs, and those egg whites whipped up super-fast. I can't wait to re-try the meringue topping that I've struggled with.

Ingredients:
1 lb whole roasted chiles, (5 large)
3 cups grated cheese
3 T. butter
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup red pepper, chopped
3 T. yellow cornmeal
1 T. Flour
1 cup milk
1 t. salt
1/8 t. cayenne
1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
6 egg yolks
6 egg whites, stiffly beaten
Salsa

Directions:

Stuff chiles with 2 cups cheese. Place in 13x9 casserole dish. 

Melt butter, add onion and peppers and cook 2-3 minutes. 

Sprinkle with cornmeal, flour, and cook stirring until flour begins to bubble (2-3 minutes). Gradually add milk, whisking until sauce is smooth and thick (4-5 minutes). Add salt, cayenne, corn and egg yolks. 

When ready to bake pie, fold in egg whites.

Spread over chiles and sprinkle 1 cup cheese over top. 

Bake 25 minutes at 350 degrees until crust is set and golden. Serve with salsa.

Whew...yes, I enjoyed this.

But, I think may treat myself next time I'm at Playa Azul and order it.

What is your favorite thing to order at a restaurant

because it's better when someone else makes it?

Italian Sausage Spinach Pie - Week 17 Bonus

Spinach is a great vegetable that people hate on, 

but would absolutely love it if they gave it a chance!

I love the versatility of this vegetable! It is great as a fresh treat in salads, served steamed, or included as an ingredient in main dishes. One of the first dishes that I perfected early in our marriage was Spinach Florentine Lasagna Casserole; and later on in the year, Spinach Meatballs was another favorite. 

I was kind of crazy about spinach. My boys liked it, and I couldn't imagine why anyone would not like it. The key is to eat fresh or frozen spinach. Canned spinach is nasty...I know Popeye disagrees, but seriously it isn't even the same thing! Spinach is considered a super food because of its nutritious benefits.

I have grown it in the garden in the past successfully, but it takes a lot to cook up as it cooks down tremendously. However, if you enjoy fresh spinach, you should try growing it as it is one of the easiest garden items to grow if you plant it in the cooler season; it doesn't like the hot temperatures of Kansas and will die out. But, it is easy to have a second season in the fall if you plant it after the dog days of summer.

I love this recipe for Italian Sausage Spinach Pie because it's a great treat for leftovers the next day and it really stretches your ingredients for a full meal. I don't know how it is possible, but we typically get 8 servings out of 1 pound of sausage. And, this is the same family that each one of us could eat the pound hamburger special at a restaurant.

If you like pie and sausage, but not sure about the spinach; this is the recipe to try. I think you may start to appreciate it.

Ingredients:
1 deep dish double large pastry pie crust
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage
1 medium onion, chopped
6 eggs, beaten
1 pkg (16 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed & well-drained
1 c. grated cheese
1 pkg (3 oz.) cream cheese, cubed
1/2 t. garlic salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 T. water






Directions:
In skillet brown sausage and onion; drain. Separate 1 egg and set aside the yolk. In a mixing bowl, beat the remaining egg white and whole eggs. Stir in the sausage and onion, spinach, grated cheese, cream cheese, garlic salt, and pepper. Line pie plate with bottom pastry. Add filling.

Top with upper crust, seal and flute edges. Cut slits in top crust. 
Combine water with reserved egg yolk; brush over top crust. Bake at 375 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown.

After trying this recipe, you may become a spinach lover too!

Chicken Divan Pie - Week 14 Bonus

When the spoon hits your mouth

for a big chicken pie, that's a mournay.

When the greens seem to shine,

like you've had too much sauce, that's a mournay...

Cheesy Ode to Chicken Divan Pie

I found a book in the library that contained only pot pie recipes, and it defined a pot pie as having the crust on the top. The book had all sorts of bread crumb topped casseroles and classified them as pie; so this chicken divan can be classified as a pie!

The star of this pie is the sauce; its creamy mournay sauce takes a little bit of time, but it is well worth the effort.  This French dish originated in New York when it was named after the Divan Parisien Restaurant. This postcard was from the 1940s, and I can only imagine how it felt to feed your family this fancy dish in the 50s knowing that its roots were from a fine dining establishment in New York City. 

The list of the things that I love about this dish is long: 

the fresh steamed broccoli, the homemade crusty topping, one-dish goodness, and the parmesan cheesy sauce. 

This was my first attempt on making homemade croutons that was needed for the crumb topping. I think they were pretty tasty. You could substitute store-bought croutons or even stove top for the top if you want to make the recipe simpler. The fresh garlic crumbs really complemented the other flavors in this dish.

This dish also exercises your chef abilities by creating a roux for the sauce. A roux (pronounced "rue") is simply heating up a fat in the pan and adding flour and cooking it until the raw flour taste is gone and the desired color has been reached before adding the liquid.

This sauce also uses cream that has been whipped into soft peaks making it extra creamy and delicious.

Ingredients:

3 slices toasted/dried bread

4 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 t. Italian seasoning

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. ground pepper

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

1 large bunch of broccoli, cut into spears

4 T. butter

5 T. flour

2 cups chicken broth 

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 T. lemon juice

Garlic, Salt & Pepper, to taste

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

6 tenderloin chicken breasts, cooked and diced

Directions:

Cube toasted/dried bread into bread crumbs for topping. Mix garlic, olive oil, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and ¾ cup parm cheese together. Toss with bread crumbs until well mixed. Set aside for topping.

Steam broccoli just until tender, and drain well.

In saucepan, melt the butter over medium low heat; add the flour and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes until the mixture is a golden brown. Add the chicken broth and continue to stir until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile in a bowl, beat the cream until it holds stiff peaks. Stir the cream, lemon juice and 3/4 cup parm cheese into the sauce. Garlic, salt & pepper to taste.

In 2 quart casserole, arrange broccoli around the edges, stems pointed toward the inside. Place chicken on top of the broccoli. Spoon the sauce over the chicken. Sprinkle bread crumb topping over the sauce.

Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees until bread crumbs are crispy.  

This recipe found a permanent location in my recipe box for those special occasions when you want the familiar but satisfying layers of taste you get with the one-dish meal.