Irene Rizzo has been keeping people motived to stay fit and healthy for twenty five years. She owned and operated her own studio in New York City and has trained many high profile clients. She holds top certifications for personal training, nutrition, strength, and the method of Joseph Pilates. She now specializes in the techniques of Pilates and holistic health coaching and has uniquely integrated these techniques into her own holistic approach to health.
Kale and Swiss Chard Cheese Pie
Preheat oven to 375*.
You will need one large chafing pan and pastry brush.
1 pk Filo Factory filo pastry
3 cups of cooked greens (kale and swiss chard), packed down with water squeezed out
2 cups feta cheese, crumbled
2 cups grated gruyere cheese
1½ cups grated mozzarella cheese
1 bunch fresh dill, chopped
2 large onions, chopped and sautéed in olive oil
2 eggs, beaten
3 handfuls of uncooked organic basmati rice
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup olive oil
Sauté the greens in a wok, using water to cook them. When fully cooked, drain and squeeze out water. Measure 3 cups of squeezed out greens and place in large bowl. Add feta, dill, sautéed onions, gruyere, mozzarella, eggs, and rice. Mix well.
Add the olive oil to the pot of melted butter. Spray the chaffing pan with olive oil.
Open filo pastry and lay out on work surface. The pastry is about 1” too wide for the chaffing pan and about 1” too short, so I cut 1” off of the width along the long side of the pastry, to make it narrower, and use the cut pieces to add to the length.
Lay out first sheet of filo, on the bottom of chaffing pan. Use a piece of the cut off pastry to add to the length. Brush with oil/butter mixture, using a wide pastry brush. Repeat and continue layering the filo pastry. You want to use half of the filo for the bottom, and half of the filo for the top. Usually, there are about 20 sheets in the box, so use 8-10 sheets on the bottom, then spread the kale/swiss chard/ cheese filling out evenly on top of the layered filo pastry. Press the filling down gently, evening it out all around. Then we are going to layer the filo sheets on the top, in the same manner as the bottom, brushing in between each layer with the butter/oil mixture until all of the filo is used up.
It is easier to cut the pie before it is cooked. I cut it into 4 pieces across the short side, and then 6-8 pieces down the long side, depending on the portion size I want to serve. You will have a total of either 24 or 32 pieces.