More Pie!

I hope you aren't disappointed, but this post is not about a dessert pie. Nope, this is a dinner pie. It's called a pie because essentially you are forming a crust in a pie plate using........wait for it.......spaghetti. Or in my case, angel hair.

I am very surprised at myself for not posting this recipe much much sooner. It's one of my favorites. Of course, it has all my favorite elements: pasta, tomatoes and gooey cheese. What more could a girl ask for?

This recipe came from someone named Terri Enberg (I hope I spelled her name right). I worked with her years ago at JK Gill. She brought this in for lunch one day and I had to have the recipe. It originally comes from the Oregonian's Food Day circular.

The great thing about this recipe is that it can be slimmed way down. For those on Weight Watchers or watching their fat intake, just substitute the cheeses with lower fat options. This is also a meatless dish, which tend to be lower cost to make. So not only is it great for people counting calories, it's great for people counting pennies.

I had all the ingredients on hand for this dish except for the ricotta. I would be willing to bet that you will also have many of these ingredients on hand. I always keep shredded cheese in the fridge, and I always have tomato or spaghetti sauce and pasta on hand.

So, without further ado: Pie!

Spaghetti Pie
from: Oregonian Food Day

8 ounces hot, cooked spaghetti, drained
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 cup plus two tablespoons parmesan cheese, grated and divided
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese (1/2 of a 15 oz container)
1 cup spaghetti sauce
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 10-inch pie plate. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, toss hot spaghetti with olive oil. In a small bowl, combine eggs and 1/2 cup parmesan cheese. Stir into spaghetti. Pour spaghetti mixture into prepared pie plate, spreading to form a crust.

3. Spread ricotta evenly over the crust, but not quite to the edge. Top with spaghetti sauce.

4. Bake uncovered for 25 minutes. Top with shredded mozzarella and bake 5 minutes longer, until cheese melts.

5. Remove from oven and sprinkle with remaining 2 tablespoons parmesan. Cool 10 minutes before cutting into wedges.