Recipe for "spinach-pie"

NAME

     SPINACH-PIE - A rich spinach pie with ham and cheese
     I ate this dish at Cafe Le Rat in Middleburg, Virginia,  and
     was  delighted  to  find their recipe in Gourmet magazine in
     the late 1970's.  I have modified the recipe  somewhat  from
     the published version to make it less stringy and sticky.

INGREDIENTS (1 pie)

     500 g     skim-milk ricotta cheese
     120 g     Gruyere  cheese,  grated  (or   substitute   Swiss
               cheese)
     1         egg, lightly beaten
     300 g     cooked spinach (1 package of  frozen  spinach,  or
               use fresh)
     2         small zucchini, thinly sliced
     50 g      yellow onion, diced
     5-6        large mushrooms, thinly sliced
     50 g      Danish-style ham, diced
     30 g      butter
               nutmeg, salt, and white pepper, to taste
               olive oil

PROCEDURE

          (1)  Preheat oven to 220 deg. C.
          (2)  Cook the spinach.  Drain  thoroughly  and  squeeze
               out all moisture possible.
          (3)  Heat butter over medium high  flame  until  foamy.
               Add  onion,  zucchini,  and  mushrooms,  and saute
               until onion is soft and translucent.
          (4)  Add ham and spinach, and saut e  briefly  to  warm
               through.  Remove from heat.
          (5)  In mixing bowl, mix together  ricotta  cheese  and
               vegetables.   Add  grated  cheese  and blend.  Add
               beaten egg and blend thoroughly.  Season to  taste
               with nutmeg, salt and white pepper.
          (6)  Grease quiche pan with just enough  olive  oil  to
               coat.   Pour  in mixture and smooth the top with a
               spatula.  Dot with 3-4 pats of butter.
          (7)  Bake at 220 deg. C for about 30-40 minutes,  until
               top  is browned and knife inserted in center comes
               out clean.

RATING

     Difficulty: easy.  Time: 15 minutes preparation, 45  minutes
     baking and cooling.  Precision: approximate measurement OK.

CONTRIBUTOR

     Pamela McGarvey
     UCLA Comprehensive Epilepsy Program
     {ihnp4!sdcrdcf,ucbvax!ucla-cs,hao}!cepu!pam