A Northern Greek-inspired cheese and leek pie with greens and artichokes and a gluten-free crust. You will love Cheese, Leek, and Artichoke Pie!
I have always loved Greek food! There has always been something about it that was very comforting and satisfying!
When I became vegan, I missed things like spanokopita and the Northern Greek cheese pies. But no more! Now I can enjoy one of my favorite dinners and remain plant-based!
I hope you will enjoy Cheese, Leek, and Artichoke Pie as much as I do!
Ingredients
- Leeks
- Greens
- Artichokes
- Feta cheese
- Cornmeal
See recipe card for quantities.
Leeks have a milder and sweeter flavor than onions. They also have a creamy texture when cooked that go well with the cheese.
The greens provide some contrast to the other ingredients in the pie. Pictured is spinach, but chard, mustard greens, arugula, dandelion greens, and nettles would also be awesome. In fact, you needn't just use one kind, feel free to mix them up!
The artichokes give a mild and nutty taste to the pie, with a touch of bitterness. Their texture goes very well with the creaminess of the pie
Feta is one of the commonly used cheeses in Greek Cuisine. You can use store bought plant-based feta, I like Violife a lot. But I always make this pie with the Gentle Chef's Mediterranean Herbed Feta, which takes only 5 minutes to make!
I really like this pie with a cornmeal crust. Using coarse cornmeal gives a crunchy texture. The cornmeal also gives an earthy taste that plays well with the other flavors in the Pie.
Instructions
Step 1: Wash the leeks and cut into approximately 1 inch pieces. Cut these pieces in half and separate the pieces. Wash them well, leeks can have a lot of dirt in them.
Step 2: Place the leeks in a bowl, mix with about a tablespoon of coarse salt. Mix to cover all the pieces of leek. Set aside for about an hour.
This will help soften them and give them a milder flavor.
Step 3: Wash and chop the greens.
Step 4: Place the chopped greens in a bowl, mix with about a tablespoon of coarse salt. Mix well so all leaves have salt on them. Set aside for at least 45 minutes.
This will help soften them.
Step 5: When the leeks and greens are finished, rinse well with water and squeeze out the moisture. Reserve the liquid for the pie crust.
Step 6: Heat a skillet up over medium heat. When hot, add oil. When the oil is shimmering, add in the leeks. Sauté the leeks until soft, about 15 minutes.
Step 7: If making the pie on the same day as cooking the pie contents, grease a 9 inch pie pan with either a plant-based butter or olive oil.
Step 8: Evenly sprinkle the fine cornmeal over the pie pan, including the sides. If you like, also sprinkle some coarse cornmeal on the bottom for some additional crunch!
Step 9: Sprinkle the reserved liquid from squeezing out the greens and leeks to slightly dampen the cornmeal. You can also use water.
Step 10: When the leeks are soft, add in the greens and artichokes into the skillet.
Step 11: Mix well. Sauté the skillet contents until the greens are wilted, about 5 minutes.
Step 12: Place the contents of the skillet into a bowl and let cool for about 5 minutes. Add in the feta.
Step 13: Mix the contents of the bowl well.
Step 14: Put the contents of the bowl into the pie pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle the coarse cornmeal across the top of the pie. Moisten with the reserved liquid or mist with water.
Step 15: Bake in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 1 hour, or when the crust has become a reddish brown.
Let cool for at least 20 minutes on a wire rack.
Enjoy!
Do make sure you salt the leeks and greens. This helps remove moisture from them and makes the pie firmer.
Substitutions
Though I have never tried it, if you or someone you will make Cheese, Leek, Artichoke Pie for, try another gluten free flour, like chickpea flour. You can replace the coarse cornmeal with a finer flour, though it will change the texture of the pie.
Variations
Give the dish some heat by adding chili pepper flakes, or perhaps some sliced chilis into the pie itself.
As stated earlier, be creative with the greens. But if you use any with tough veins, like chard, remove the veins and just use the more tender leaves.
Equipment
- A skillet
- A 9" pie pan
- A knife
- A chopping board
- 2 bowls for the salted leeks and greens
Storage
The pie should stay good for 2-3 days in an airtight container.
I have never frozen this pie after eating it, I like it too much. But I imagine it would keep for a couple of months. It will change the texture somewhat.
Related
Looking for other recipes like Cheese, Leek, and Artichoke Pie? Try these:
Pairing
These are my favorite dishes to serve with Cheese, Leek, and Artichoke Pie:
Recipe
Cheese, Leek, and Artichoke Pie
Equipment
- 1 skilet
- 1 pie pan 9 inch
- 1 knife
- 1 cutting board
- 2 bowls for salting the leeks and greens
Ingredients
- 5 leeks medium
- 8 cups greens can include spinach, chard, mustard greens, arugula, mizuna
- 1 ¾ cups artichoke hearts marinated
- ⅓ cup cornmeal fine
- ⅓ cup cornmeal coarse
- ¾ pound cheese plant based equivalents of feta, parmesan, perhaps mozzarella
- butter, oil, or coconut oil to grease the pie pan
- salt coarse
Instructions
- Cut the tough portions of the leeks and the root end away. Cut the remaining leeks into approximately 1” sections. Quarter each section. Wash thoroughly. Leeks can often have dirt in between the layers of the leek and you want all of that out. Place the cleaned leeks into a bowl, add coarse salt, making sure that all the leek bits get the salt on them. Set aside for 50-60 minutes. This helps remove moisture from the leeks, softens them, and can remove any bitterness.
- Wash and shred the greens, removing any thick stems. Also salt with the coarse salt, making sure to work the salt into all the greens. Set aside in a bowl for approximately 45 minutes. This helps remove moisture from the greens and softens them.
- Once time is up on the salted greens and leeks, rinse them thoroughly to remove all the salt. Working with small handfuls or each, squeeze out as much liquid as you can. You can reserve up to a half cup of the liquid for the crust. You can also use cheesecloth to squeeze the liquid out, but I find hand squeezing sufficient.
- Sauté the leeks in a pan until soft, about 15 minutes. Add the greens and the artichokes in the same pan and sauté until the greens are wilted, about 5 minutes. Place in a bowl.
- While the leeks are cooking, take a 9” pie pan and either grease it completely, bottom and sides, with plant-based butter. You can also use oil. Sprinkle in the fine ground cornmeal, making sure the bottom and sides of the pie dish are evenly coated.
- Moisten the cornmeal with either water or the reserved liquid from squeezing the greens. I find using a squirt bottle on mist is easiest. Doing this may expose some bare spots in the pan, cover them with a bit more cornmeal.
- If you like, sprinkle some coarse ground cornmeal in the bottom of the pan. It will provide some crunch at the bottom of the pie.
- Mix the cheese with the greens. Use your hands to make sure the cheese is evenly mixed with the greens.
- All of the above can be done the day before, though if you do, wait on greasing the pie pan and adding the cornmeal. But if you the pie on the same day, let the mixture cool somewhat.
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add in the cheese/greens mix into the pie container. Spread relatively smoothly. Cover the top of the pie with the ⅓rd cup of coarse cornmeal. Mist the cornmeal with water.
- Place in the oven for 1 hour or when the upper level of cornmeal has turned a reddish-brown. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack for at least 20 minutes before serving.
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