Well, Connecticut IS the Nutmeg State....

After the Beef Bourguignon last week, and the brisket that followed for Passover, I decided to make something vegetarian for dinner. Ina's Spinach Pie.

The boys were working on a Science Fair project all day. You know, the one we had three weeks to prepare for but didn't start working on until two days before it's due? Yes, that one.

Fortunately I was not in charge of this particular project. That was G's job. I busied myself with errands and reruns of old General Hospital episodes on Soap Network. I've been watching that show since I was eight years old. I would get home from school and plop myself down on the carpet in my parent's room and watch with my mom. Luke and Laura's wedding sucked me in, and I've been hooked ever since. It's a guilty pleasure, what can I say?

Let me start off by saying that phyllo dough is a bitch to work with. I've used it in the past, but it's been so long that I forgot just how difficult it is. I knew things were going too well....I had chopped the onions and sauteed them....

Defrosted the spinach, chopped up the feta, mixed it all with the eggs, pine nuts, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Things got a little dicey when it came time to play with the dough. It ripped every single time I tried to pick a sheet up. The other issue was that Ina wanted the dough to lay in the bottom of the pan, then wrap OVER the top of the filling. There was no way that the sheets were long enough to do that, so I tried staggering them. In between each sheet Auntie said to brush with butter. An entire stick of butter just for brushing purposes. Oy. So, I inevitably pieced together the sheets of phyllo, filled with the spinach mixture, and covered with extra sheets because it just wouldn't all come up from the bottom. Fortunately, it looked pretty decent once I was finished putting it all together.

Popped it in the oven, and 45 minutes later it was done...

The first thing I noticed when I took a bite was a very strong nutmeg flavor. I was a little worried when I was adding the ingredients that two teaspoons seemed like a lot of nutmeg, but I was following Auntie's instructions. Now I know that if I do make this again, or if you want to make it, cut the nutmeg in half! Or leave it out if you don't care for the flavor of nutmeg.

Here is a cross section...

Aside from the nutmeg issue, I really did like it. I had some warm when it was first cooked, and then had a few bites cold from the refrigerator a few days later. At 373 calories a serving it isn't necessarily diet food, but it certainly isn't as bad as some of Auntie's other bombs.

So...I think I would recommend it. Minus at least one teaspoon of nutmeg. Here is a link to the recipe:
Spinach Pie