Zucchini Pie

This dish looks like a lot of time was spent in the preparation but it’s quite easy and simple to make. This soft and creamy pie is great when having your friends over for lunch or dinner as it can be served as the main meal or as an appetizer. Zucchini (aka courgette) contains Vitamin C and lutein (promotes eye health). The peoples of Central and South America have been eating zucchini for several thousand years, but the zucchini we know today is a variety of summer squash developed in Italy and only became popular in North America in the 1950’s. Zucchini is also a good source of fiber (4 grams per cup).

Serves 6-8
(16-20 appetizer servings)

4 medium zucchini, cut into 1/4 inch slices
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 eggs
1 cup cottage cheese
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tomato, sliced thinly
parsley for garnish

Heat oil in a large skillet and add zucchini slices. Sauté until softened but not mushy. Line bottom and side of a greased 23cm (9″) pie plate with sautéed zucchini slices. Preheat oven to 180c (350f). In a large bowl beat eggs. Beat in cottage cheese and butter until blended (don’t worry about the cottage cheese lumps as they will melt once in the oven). Stir in flour, baking powder and salt until blended. Add sour cream and Parmesan and stir until blended. Pour evenly into zucchini lined pie plate. Gently smooth the top with a spatula. Filling will not quite fill pan but will expand when baked. Carefully arrange tomato slices over top of filling. Bake 35-45 minutes until firm in the center. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Invert onto a 12 inch round platter. Garnish center with parsley. Cut into wedges; serve warm.

The Culinary Chase’s Note: Serve this with a side salad. You can also slice into small wedges for appetizer servings. Don’t worry about inverting this pie…..it works every time!