Good Ideas: Beet Greens Pie

beet greens6

Roasting beets the other a.m. (doesn't everyone roast beets first thing in the morning?), I thought, what a waste it is to always throw away those beautiful red stemmed leaves, also known as beet greens.

I got a burst of energy and decided instead of tossing them, to cut them up, throw them in a big skillet with 2 cloves of sliced garlic, olive oil, a few pieces of chopped bacon and half a red onion, salt and pepper.

Now what am I going to do with this cooked beet green mixture at 9 a.m.?



I remember as a kid, my friend's grandmother from Italy used to make a Swiss chard pie. I didn't even know what Swiss chard was back then.
It was so delicious made with a buttery crust and ricotta cheese. Why I was thinking about that pie from 30 years ago, I can not tell you.

I decided to recreate that beautiful greens pie to the best of my memory, using the beet greens. Instead of a pasta frolla, or pie crust, I used fresh breadcrumbs and adhered them to the buttered pie dish.

I was very pleased with how this came out, it was pretty and delicious, just like I remember.



Stacey's Beet Greens Pie:

bunch of beet greens cut, washed and chopped
3 slices of bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 eggs
16 oz. container of fresh ricotta cheese
3/4 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
1/2 cup of fresh breadcrumbs
butter for greasing the pan

In a large heavy skillet, cook your bacon until starting to render some fat, and add the beet greens, garlic and onion. Cook about 10 minutes until greens start to wilt and take off the heat.

In a bowl, mix your eggs, ricotta cheese, parmesan, salt and pepper and add the beet green mixture once it has cooled.

In a well greased pie dish or quiche pan, press fresh breadcrumbs into the sides to create a crust.

Pour your filling into this and bake in a 350F oven for about 30 minutes until puffed and golden.



Serve with a beet salad, but of course.

Comments

Ciao Chow Linda said…
Stacey - Your pie looks delicious and I adore beets in any form, but I never got a liking for beet greens. I'd love that pie with the swiss chard as you had it growing up.
A very good idea! I love greens. They taste really interesting.

Cheers,

Rosa
The JR said…
Creative and pretty.
kat said…
I'm a big fan of beet greens & swiss chard (basically the same thing) & this is a great way to use them
Jen_from_NJ said…
Stacey you are so creative - and at 9am...? I am impressed. Your pie looks perfect!
tasteofbeirut said…
I love what you did with the beet greens! in lebanon, we make them in a salad with tahini dressing.
Claudia said…
Hey, sounds great, and a good use of breadcrumbs, which I've always got.
Dana said…
OK Miss Creativity at 9am. Who are you? What a gorgeous thing that is. I am roasting tomatoes as I type and it is 7:34am.
Great idea. Nice combination of ingredients. Thanks a lot for the inspiration.
Leigh said…
I was looking at some food blogs and happened onto yours. I'm going to make this tonight for dinner. Thanks.

Leigh
Leslie said…
Thanks for the recipe. Made it for my Italian husband and he was thrilled. I used a prepared/rolled pie crust and it turned out great. I baked it for an extra 15 minutes at 350 degrees, but I live at 4000 feet, so it may have needed a few more minutes anyway.