Week 16 - More Pie

[Posted by Ruth]
The pie kick continues.  Week 15 brought my first bunch of turnip greens which I paired with bacon and summer squash in a polenta crust.  Here it is before baking...

And after baking.

 It came out great although you'll notice that the attempt at a fluted edge was a waste of time.  The polenta is just too soft to hold the shape.  In fact, if you want to serve this piping hot straight from the oven, you'll be spooning it out, rather than slicing it.  You might even want to put the polenta on top in that case.  We let it sit for about 20 minutes and were able to cut and carefully serve the slices.  At room temperature is should slice very well.  We didn't have a chance to test this theory; it was long gone before it cooled!

Turnip Green/Summer Squash Pie with Potenta Crust

Preheat oven to 375.
You can make your own polenta instead of using the packaged, but the packaged worked very well here and made this a quick weeknight meal.

Polenta Crust
1 Package (18 oz) ready made, organic polenta 
4 T unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper, if needed - depends on the polenta you use

Place all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until completely blended.  Press into a standard sized pie pan.  (See above, don't bother to flute the edges)

Filling
5 thick slices bacon (we used applewood smoked) cut up
1/2 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 bunch turnip greens - coarsely chopped
1 small/medium summer squash, thinly sliced into 1/2 rounds
1 T minced fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste


Cook bacon pieces over medium heat until crisped, but not over-browned.  Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and set aside, leaving the fat in the pan.  Saute the onion and garlic in the bacon drippings until softened.  Add the turnip greens and squash and cook over medium heat until just cooked through, stopping before the squash gets too soft.  Add salt and pepper to taste (careful with the salt, the bacon and the cheese in the crust will add quite a bit) and stir in the basil.  Turn the vegetables into the crust and bake over a cookie sheet to catch any drips for 30-40 minutes, until the crust is beginning to turn a light golden brown and the filling has cooked down.  Let cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.


Here is the haul for week 16.  The week brought a huge amount and variety.  It was great to get some more corn before the season ends.  They were small, very sweet, tender ears.  There was also a head of lettuce.  I was actually happy to see it so I guess I'm over the Spring lettuce overload syndrome!