Sizzling Skillets and Other One-Pot Wonders - Emeril Lagasse [29]
12 enchiladas, about 6 servings
SPINACH AND PHYLLO TART
Thin, leaf-like sheets of dough are brushed lightly with butter and then sandwiched together to make the crust for this tart. Phyllo can be both magical and infuriating for some—the paper-thin pastry can seem difficult to work with. But here are some good tips: keep the unused phyllo covered by a damp cloth, work quickly, and have all your ingredients ready to go before you get started. Once you learn how to use phyllo, you’ll love it for its tender, flaky layers.
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup roughly chopped onion
2 tablespoons minced green onion
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1½ pounds baby spinach
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces French goat milk feta or other mild feta, such as Bulgarian, crumbled
½ cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
½ cup toasted chopped walnuts
¼ cup golden raisins
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint leaves
One 16-ounce package frozen phyllo, thawed according to package directions
6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When hot, add the onion, green onion, and garlic and cook until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a large mixing bowl and set aside.
3. Add the spinach to the hot pan, little by little, adding more spinach to the pan as the previous batch wilts. Cook, stirring, until all the spinach has wilted. Season with ½ teaspoon of the salt and ¼ teaspoon of the pepper and place the spinach in a colander set over a bowl to drain.
4. When the spinach has cooled, squeeze to remove any excess liquid and discard. Add the spinach to the bowl with the onions and garlic. Stir in the feta, ricotta, walnuts, raisins, parsley, mint, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper until thoroughly combined.
5. Unroll the phyllo. Place 1 sheet of phyllo on a clean, dry work surface and cover the remaining sheets with a piece of plastic wrap and a damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out. Using a pastry brush, brush the phyllo lightly with some of the melted butter. Top with a second sheet of phyllo and brush lightly with butter. Repeat until you have a total of 10 layers of phyllo, brushing each layer with butter. Lay the stack of buttered phyllo in an 11-inch round tart pan with a removable bottom. Set the tart pan on a baking sheet. Spread the filling evenly in the phyllo-lined pan.
6. Prepare a second stack of phyllo in the same manner as the first, using the remaining sheets. This should take roughly the whole box of phyllo, considering that several sheets usually tear. Place the second stack of phyllo on top of the spinach filling. Brush lightly with the remaining butter. Sprinkle the Parmesan and sesame seeds evenly over the top of the tart. Roughly trim the edges of any overhanging phyllo so they don’t hang too far over the edge of the tart pan. Bake until the phyllo is crispy and deep golden brown, about 45 minutes.
7. Transfer the tart to a cooling rack to cool briefly, then slice and serve warm or at room temperature.
8 servings
TURKEY CLUB CASSEROLE
There is some speculation that club sandwiches may have gotten their name because they were served at private men’s social clubs—or perhaps the sandwich was originally called a “two-decker” and served in the double-decker club cars on the railroad. Either way, club sandwiches today usually consist of three pieces of toast layered with sliced tomato, lettuce, turkey, bacon, and sometimes cheese. In this recipe, we have layered club sandwiches in a baking dish, soaked