Popay Pie

2 days ago
4 min read

##Discover the Delight of Popay Pie

Popay Pie

Puff pastry pie with spinach and ricotta filling is both delicious and simple to prepare, making it a dish you'll want to recreate repeatedly. In this recipe, I opted for fresh kale instead of spinach, which I cooked in boiling water for approximately 7 minutes. If you choose to use spinach, you can skip this step. Additionally, I incorporated button mushrooms, combining them with the kale. While puff pastry is recommended, you may also use homemade dough (see the recipe here or thin crusts for pies and cakes, depending on your preference. This recipe is excellent; let's prepare it together. Follow the recipe.

Ingredients: simple, total time: 80 min., 8 serving

200 g of fresh spinach/ or kale, spinach can be frozen - finely chopped
250 g of button mushrooms/ cut into leaves
200 g of ricotta cheese/ or tofu or other cheese
1/2 medium onion/ finely chopped
2 medium cloves of garlic/ minced
2 Tbsp of olive oil EVO
2 sheets puff pastry/ or yeast dough
1 tsp of salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp nutmeg/ optional
1 tsp of dried oregano
1/2 cup of water/ or 130 ml liquid from boiled kale

For Spread:

1 egg yolk + 30 ml milk

Preparation:

Prepare all the ingredients as described above.
First, prepare the filing of spinach or kale.
Wash the spinach well if it is fresh and clean it of the excess stalk.
If you are working with black cabbage - kale, wash them well under warm water, separate the leaves from the main stem, then remove the hard vein in the middle.
Heat water with a little salt for black cabbage - kale. If you are working with spinach there is no need for it.
As soon as it boils, put the cleaned leaves and cook until they become limp. When it has softened, turn off the heat and strain. Let it cool then chop it in small pieces
Heat the olive oil in a pan over low medium heat.
Add the finely chopped onion and fry until translucent, about 2-3 minutes.
Add the mushrooms cut into thin leaves - fry them until they soften and all the liquid evaporates, about 7 minutes.
Add minced garlic, when fragrant add fresh chopped spinach or kale, water (or liquid from boiled kale) fry about 10 - 15 minutes, until the spinach wilts, and the liquid evaporate.
NOTE: Make sure that the liquid evaporates well from the ingredients so that the dough is not sticky!
Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg, if using.
Remove the pan from the heat and let the mixture cool.
Now prepare the filling of ricotta.
In a large bowl, mash the ricotta or other cheese with a fork until creamy, then mix it with the cooled vegetables.
Sprinkle with oregano and season with salt and black pepper as needed, mix all ingredients well until combined.
Place one sheet of puff pastry on the greased baking dish ( round or rectangle) and roll it out so that it covers the bottom and sides of the pan. (If you use yeast dough, you can simply roll it into the desired shape.)
Spread the prepared filling with spinach, mushrooms and ricotta cheese evenly over the dough.
Cover with the second part of the dough, and carefully press the edges with a fork so that they do not open during baking.
Prick the top of the dough with a fork, then brush with a mixture of egg yolk and a little milk.
Place the pie in a preheated oven at 180°C and bake for about 30-40 minutes, until it becomes golden brown and crispy on the surface.
When Popeye's Lenten Pie is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes before cutting it into pieces.
Serve it warm, with yogurt or a lean sauce of your choice.

Buon appetito!

NOTE:

If you want to make this pie with a thin crust, then make a separate mushroom filling mixed with ricotta, and especially kale mixed with ricotta. You will add half an onion and one and the other filling with the addition of minced garlic.
The shape of this pie is not important, it can be round or rectangular, it depends on which pan you have and which dough you bought, because it is available in round and rectangular shapes.
For this round dough you will need 28 - 30 cm in size.
For the rectangular dough, you will need a size of 35 x 40 cm.
If you don't have both, then you can bake from an oven tray, which you have previously lined with baking paper.
You can keep the rest of the pie at room temperature. covered for up to 2 days, in case you keep it in the fridge in the summer.