This is one of those lovely mix-and-match dishes where you can use up all sorts of vegetables, herbs and odds and ends of cheese that happen to be lurking in the fridge. Just make sure the amounts of all these bits and pieces roughly correspond to the quantities in the recipe.
Ingredients:
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 leeks, washed thoroughly and finely chopped
- 500g spinach
- 6 zucchini (courgettes) (about 400g total weight)
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 2 Tbsp finely chopped dill, mint or basil
- 40g fine dry breadcrumbs 200g marinated feta, crumbled
- 150g haloumi, crumbled heaped ²⁄³ cup (about 60g)
- freshly grated parmesan
- sea salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 6 × 60g eggs, lightly beaten
Garnish:
dill or mint sprigs, optional
To serve:
steamed new potatoes tomato salad drizzled with olive oil
Method:
- Preheat your oven to 180°C. Lightly butter a 25cm × 6cm round ovenproof dish and line the base with buttered baking paper. Set it aside.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan over high heat. Add the leeks and cook them, stirring regularly, for 2–3 minutes, or until they have just wilted. Take them off the heat, scrape them into a large bowl and leave them to cool a bit.
3. Steam the spinach for 2–3 minutes, or until it is a brilliant green and has wilted. Drain it in a colander and refresh it under cold running water. Squeeze it to get rid of as much moisture as possible. Fluff it up a bit, chop it coarsely and add it to the leeks.
4. Steam the zucchini for 2–3 minutes, or until they have softened a little. Drain and refresh them under cold water. Pat them dry and chop all bar one small zucchini into little chunks. Slice the remaining zucchini into slender strips and put them aside.
5. Add the zucchini chunks to the veggie bowl, along with the parsley, dill (or mint or basil), breadcrumbs, cheeses (reserving a little of each for the garnish), salt and pepper. Toss everything together until it’s thoroughly combined. Pour in the beaten eggs and mix them in well.
6. Scrape the mixture into the prepared dish and press down on it so it’s firmly packed. Press the slender zucchini strips into the top and scatter on the reserved cheeses.
7. Put the dish in the oven and bake it for 45 minutes, or until it’s just set but still moist. To check, insert the tip of a fine knife down into the middle and press the two sides of the cut apart, then have a peek, it should look moist but set.
8. When it’s ready, sit it on a rack to settle for about 5 minutes. Loosen the bake around the edges and invert it onto a flat plate, peeling away the paper. Sit a serving platter on top and re-invert it onto the platter. (You may find some juices seep out initially; if they do, mop them up with paper towel.) You can sprinkle herb sprigs on top, if you like, but there’s quite a lot happening already! Serve the bake warm or at room temperature. It’s lovely served with steamed new potatoes and a tomato salad drizzled with a little fruity olive oil.
Extracted from In Belinda’s Kitchen: Essential Recipes By Belinda Jeffery, published by Simon & Schuster, RRP $59.99.
Food photography © Rodney Weidland, Illustrations © Daniel New
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Belinda Jeffery is one of Australia’s best loved cookery writers and teachers. Her best-known cookbook is the classic bestseller Mix & Bake. Belinda and her husband, Clive, live in Yamba in northern NSW.
