As a 15-year-old, Kelly went on her 3rd international trip and her first one without either parent. It was a big step for all of us. It helped that one of the chaperones for the trip was a close teacher-friend of mine. Kelly went on a People-to-People Student Ambassador trip to Europe. The 3-week trip consisted of visits to France, Italy & Malta.

Malta is an archipelago in the Mediterranean Sea, 50 miles south of the Italian island of Sicily. At just over 122 square miles, the country is one of the world’s smallest islands. It is very densely populated. Many different cultures have inhabited Malta and it is home to some of the oldest man-made structures in the world.

Out of the trip, Kelly loved the country of Italy the best, especially the food, but Malta was a unique experience for her. Besides the opportunity to stay with a host family, Kelly enjoyed the cooking class where she & a partner made a dessert tart. We had made pies together before, but this was her first solo experience with the art of pie crust making. She impressed herself with the results! And she brought us back a cookbook. The Maltese diet is enviously heavy on seafood and vegetable dishes. This recipe combines two of our favorite foods – pie for Kelly & vegetables for me!

Spinach & Ricotta Pie (adapted from Taste of Malta by Anton B. Dougall)

Serves 8-12

Ingredients:

Pie Crust:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter
• 6-7 tablespoons cold water

Filling:

• 28 ounces fresh baby spinach
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 18 ounces part-skim ricotta
• 3 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/2 cups)
• zest of a lemon
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 egg white
• salt & pepper to taste

Prepare the dough:  Mix the flour & salt together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add in the butter in small chunks until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water, a tablespoon at a time, just until the dough begins to hold together. Split the dough into 2 balls, with one having slightly more dough in it, flatten them and wrap them in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the discs of dough until the filling is ready.

Remove the tough stems from the spinach. Rinse it well & spin-dry it. In a large stock pot, heat the oil over medium heat then add half the spinach. Cover the pot and let the spinach steam until wilted, about 5 minutes. Drain the spinach in a colander and repeat the process with the remaining spinach, adding more oil to the pot if needed. You should have about a pound of cooked spinach.

Mix the ricotta, Parmesan, whole eggs, lemon zest, salt & pepper.

When the spinach is cool enough to handle, mix it into the ricotta until thoroughly combined.

Roll the bigger portion of dough out into a 14″ circle. Place it in the bottom of a 9″ or 10″ springform pan, bringing the edges of the crust up the sides of the pan. Transfer the spinach & ricotta filling to the pan.

Roll the second dough ball out to a 12″ circle. Place the crust on top of the filling, sealing the edges of the two crusts by pinching them together where they overlap. Cut a few vent holes in the top crust and brush it with the egg white. Place the pie in a 350° oven and bake for about 45 minutes, until the top crust starts to brown. Allow the pie to cool for 5 minutes before serving. The original recipe calls for 5-6 ounces of chopped ham, which we omit. A finely chopped onion would be a good addition to the filling!

I’d call this Mediterranean comfort food! ~Linda

Spinach & Ricotta Pie (adapted from Taste of Malta by Anton B. Dougall)

Serves 8-12

Ingredients:

Pie Crust:

• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup butter
• 6-7 tablespoons cold water

Filling:

• 28 ounces fresh baby spinach
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 18 ounces part-skim ricotta
• 3 ounces grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/2 cups)
• 2 whole eggs
• 1 egg white
• salt & pepper to taste

Prepare the dough:  Mix the flour & salt together in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add in the butter in small chunks until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water, a tablespoon at a time just until the dough begins to hold together. Split the dough into 2 balls, with one having slightly more dough in it, flatten them and wrap them in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the discs of dough until the filling is ready.

Remove the tough stems from the spinach. Rinse it well & spin-dry it. In a large stock pot, heat the oil over medium heat then add half the spinach. Cover the pot and let the spinach steam until wilted, about 5 minutes. Drain the spinach in a colander and repeat the process with the remaining spinach, adding more oil to the pot if needed. You should have about a pound of cooked spinach.

Mix the ricotta, Parmesan, whole eggs, salt & pepper. When the spinach is cool enough to handle, mix it into the ricotta until thoroughly combined.

Roll the bigger portion of dough out into a 14″ circle. Place it in the bottom of a 9″ or 10″ springform pan, bringing the edges of the crust up the sides of the pan. Transfer the spinach & ricotta filling to the pan. Roll the second dough ball out to a 12″ circle. Place the crust on top of the filling, sealing the edges of the two crusts by pinching them together where they overlap. Cut a few vent holes in the top crust and brush it with the egg white. Place the pie in a 350° oven and bake for about 45 minutes, until the top crust starts to brown. Allow the pie to cool for 5 minutes before serving. The original recipe calls for 5-6 ounces of chopped ham, which we omit. A chopped onion would be a good addition!