Saturday, April 25, 2009

Greek Greens and Sweet Onion Pie

A few wedges of this pie make a great springtime supper. Preparation takes a little while, so don't make it on a busy night! For the phyllo dough crust, I used the vegan phyllo from Fillo Factory - don't forget that you'll need to thaw it in the fridge at least 8 hours, before using it.

Start by bringing 2 quarts of water to a boil in a Dutch oven. Add 12 cups torn Swiss chard and 8 cups torn spinach - I was a little shy on the chard, with only about 9 cups, so my filling was the tiniest bit less spring-green-y than it should have been. Cook for 2 minutes, then drain. Let the greens cool a bit (so you don't burn your hands!) before squeezing them between layers of paper towels, until they are just barely moist. Set aside.

Heat a large skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add 2 cups chopped sweet onion (such as Vidalia); saute 5 minutes. Add 2 minced garlic cloves and saute another minute. Stir in the chard mixture, 1/4 cup chopped dill and 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley; cook for 1 minute.

Remove from heat and stir in 3/4 cup crumbled vegan feta (such as Sunergia). The original recipe called for 2 eggs and 2 egg whites here, but instead I made the equivalent of 4 eggs using Ener-G egg replacer. Beat with a whisk until slightly frothy, and add to the chard mixture as well, along with 1/2 tsp. black pepper and 1/4 tsp. salt.

Coat a 9-inch pie plate with cooking spray. If you're using Fillo Factory's phyllo, cut 5 of them in half, since they make their sheets extra large; you'll now have 10 sheets to work with. Working one a time, lightly coat one side of 7 sheets of phyllo with cooking spray, and arrange them, coated-side down, in a crisscross pattern in the pie plate (i.e. so they are not all lying in the same spot. Let the ends hang out.

Spoon the chard mixture into the pie plate. Top with 3 additional sheets of phyllo, also lightly coated with cooking spray, in a crisscross pattern. Roll the excess phy;lo into the dish to create an edge, and press lightly to hold. I trimmed off any ends that had become a little dried out (and phyllo does dry quickly, so be prepared to work fast here...).

Cut 4 (2-inch) slits in the top of the pie; cover with aluminum foil and bake at 375 degrees for 10 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes - your crust should be crisp and golden.

Before serving, cut into 8 wedges, two of which are 320 calories.

Cost:
Swiss chard $2.49
spinach $2.50
sweet onion $1.18
dill $1.99
flat-leaf parlsey $1.69
vegan feta $3.69

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The Vegan Pantry

  • Vegan yogurt - Whole Soy http://www.wholesoyco.com/
  • Vegan milk - Silk http://www.silksoymilk.com/
  • Vegan Feta - Sunergia http://www.sunergiasoyfoods.com/
  • Vegan Cheese - Galaxy Foods http://www.galaxyfoods.com/
  • Vegan Eggs - Ener-G http://www.ener-g.com/
  • Vegan Butter - Earth Balance http://www.earthbalance.net/product.html