Greek greens pie

Last night I made Greek pork chops and rice - browning chopped onion and garlic with the chops and adding rice and lemon, topping with feta. We ate the pork chops, but I have leftover spinach and rice. I have more frozen spinach and feta, and think this would be good with blackeyed peas and sausage.

This is a beautiful, rustic and comforting dish adapted from recipes from Epirus, a mountainous region of northwestern Greece. The cornmeal crust is like a thin layer of polenta both above and below the greens, which are fragrant with dill, mint and parsley. I use fine cornmeal, which is sometimes packaged as corn flour. It’s important to let the pie sit for 30 minutes after baking so that the crust can set.
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Well’s Vegetarian Thanksgiving 2011
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Recipes for Health: Cornmeal for Thanksgiving and Year-Round (November 14, 2011)

2 pounds spinach, chard or beet greens, or a combination, stemmed and washed thoroughly; if using packaged baby spinach, only 1 pound is required

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 bunch scallions, chopped

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

5 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 cups milk

145 grams (1 cup) fine cornmeal

1 cup water, as needed

1. If using spinach, wash the leaves, then steam, in batches if necessary, for 1 to 2 minutes, just until wilted. If using chard or beet greens, either steam 3 to 4 minutes, until wilted, or blanch in salted boiling water for about 2 minutes. Transfer the wilted greens to a bowl of cold water, then drain and squeeze out moisture. Chop medium-fine and set aside in a large bowl.

2. Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium heat in a large, heavy skillet and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the scallions and cook for another minute, then stir in the greens and chopped herbs. Toss everything together, season to taste with salt and pepper, and remove from the heat. Add the feta and stir together.

3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 10-inch round baking dish or cake pan. I prefer to use an earthenware baking dish.

4. Combine the milk and 1/2 cup water in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add salt to taste and slowly stream in the cornmeal while stirring with a whisk or a wooden spoon. If you don’t add it in a very fine stream it will lump. Stir until the mixture is thick, like polenta. Remove from the heat and place half of the mixture in your oiled baking dish. Moisten your hands and spread the cornmeal mixture over the bottom of the pan in a thin, even layer.

5. Spread the greens over the cornmeal bottom crust in an even layer. Dilute the remaining cornmeal mixture with water until it is the consistency of wet sand. Stir in the remaining olive oil. Spoon it over the greens and spread, using the back of a spoon or moistened hands, in an even layer. Don’t worry if it doesn’t cover every bit of the top.

6. Bake 45 minutes to 1 hour in the preheated oven, until the top is browned. Remove from the heat and allow to sit for 30 minutes before cutting.

Yield: 6 servings.

Advance preparation: You can make this hours before serving. It’s good at room temperature, or you can warm it in a low oven. It will keep for 3 days in the refrigerator.

Nutritional information per serving (6 servings): 308 calories; 6 grams saturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams monounsaturated fat; 28 milligrams cholesterol; 32 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 389 milligrams sodium (does not include salt to taste); 11 grams protein

Anadama Bread

i made this after i got married in the 80s from a cookbook i got at a wedding shower. i'll compare the two recipes. i always have cornmeal, molasses and yeast.
From Simply Recipes:


The dough is very sticky and is not kneadable; just spoon it into the loaf pans. It will also take some time to rise properly – sometimes 3-4 hours. Just give it time, it’ll rise.
Ingredients

* 1/2 cup cornmeal
* 2 cups water
* 1/2 cup molasses
* 3 Tbsp butter (at room temperature)
* 1 Tbsp salt
* 1/2 cup warm water
* 1 package dry yeast
* 4 1/2 cups bread flour

Method

1 Place the cornmeal in a large bowl. Boil the two cups of water and pour the hot water into the cornmeal, stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Let sit for 30 minutes.

2 Add the molasses, salt and butter and stir to combine. The cornmeal water should still be warm enough to melt the room temperature butter.

3 Put 1/2 cup of warm water (slightly warmer than body temperature) into a small bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the water and let sit for a few minutes. Then stir it to gently combine. Let sit for another 5 minutes.

4 Add the yeast and the water to the bowl with the cornmeal and everything else, and mix to combine. Add the bread flour, a cup at a time, stirring after each addition. You will end up with something of a gloopy mess.

5 Butter a couple of 5x9 loaf pans. Spoon the dough mixture into the pans as best you can; it’ll be sticky. Cover with a tea towel and let rise for several hours, until it doubles in size.

6 Heat the oven to 350°F and bake the breads for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer or knife blade comes out clean. Let the loaves cool for a few minutes, then turn them out onto racks to continue cooling.

Makes 2 loaves