3 Cheese & Wheat Berry Spinach Pie

Teeny McMunn: My Recipe Box

 


What better time than our annual Harvest Edition to put in a recipe using wheat berries. From Food Networks Healthy Eats website comes this information: "Wheat berries are a true whole grain! You may not recognize the name, but without these kernels, there would be no flour. Wheat berries are loaded with nutrients and are as easy as rice to prepare – perfect for a meal any time of year."

It goes on to say, "When boiled, cooked wheat berries have a chewy bite and subtle nutty, earthy flavor. They're sturdy enough to handle bold salad dressings and still delicate enough to taste delicious with some milk, honey and cinnamon."

If you like sprouts on salads and sandwiches, add a little water to wheat berries and you can grow your own wheat sprouts.

Wheat berries are easy to find to buy. But if you have a friend in the wheat industry, like me, you can get a gallon at no cost!

If this recipe seems "not your thing," then I encourage you to cook wheat berries and add them to salads, or check out the many recipes on line.

INGREDIENTS:

1 c. wheat berries soaked in cold water overnight

1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

1Tbsp butter

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

10 oz spinach (fresh or frozen) steamed or cooked in salted water, drained, cooled, squeezed dry

½ c. fresh flat=leaf Italian parsley chopped

30 oz whole milk ricotta cheese. (if you are making a crust for this pie, the ricotta has to be drained overnight in a cheese cloth-lines sieve.

3 oz smoked mozzarella, grated

2 oz Pecorino Romano (use Parmesan if the sheep milk cheese is not your thing, grated, plus a bit more for the top of the pie

2 large eggs, lightly whisked

2 large egg yolks, lightly whisked

1 heaped tsp kosher salt

1 scant tsp ground black pepper

½ tsp freshly ground nutmeg.

About a Tbsp melted butter and around ¼ cup of dry bread crumbs for coating the pan

DIRECTIONS:

Center an oven rack and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Generously butter a 9-inch springform pan and coat the sides and the bottom with the dry bread crumbs. Set aside.

Cook the wheat berries in salted water until tender – about 20 minutes. Rinse under cold water, drain well, and transfer to a large bowl.

In a skillet, over medium heat, sauté the onions in the olive oil and butter until the onions are soft and golden. Add the garlic and sauté for a minute, stirring. Cool slightly, then transfer to a bowl with the wheat berries. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well to thoroughly combine. Transfer the mixture into the prepared springform pan, smooth the top. Sprinkle a little bit of extra grated cheese over the top. Place the springform pan onto a shallow baking/cookie sheet and slide into the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, until set, then turn the oven off and turn the broil on. Broil for a couple of minutes, until the top is nice and brown. Transfer the pie to a rack, cool for 10 minutes. Then unmold. Serve warm.

MY NOTES: I think this is basically a quiche without the milk. For me, I would use parmesan, cheddar, and maybe swiss cheese. I'd like to see how this tastes, but since I'm substituting a few ingredients, I won't know. I will also add milk and maybe bacon😊.

I really like whole grain breads. As one son put it, "you like bread with the tractor still running behind it."

ENJOY!

 

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