Squash Pie

Growing your own food, or helping grow it like we do with Mick's parents, means there is usually plenty to go around. We put up all we can by canning, pickling, and freezing. But, not all of it gets put up. I love to play with new recipes and ingredients. We have found over the years that some things we like best fresh from the garden.

We hadn't had a squash pie in a couple of years. I had just gotten a tub of lard at the store because I wanted to work on a traditional Appalachian crust. Mary taught me how to make a pretty good pie dough, but she taught me to use shortening. I also like to use butter sometimes. So I gave it a try with the lard and, while I need a little work on my technique with it, it tasted really good. It reminded me of how Mary used to bread her fried squash, she used crushed saltine crackers.

This recipe calls for mayonnaise for the topping. I have found that you need to use a good quality mayo. I tried a store brand the first time I made it years ago and it separated and the oil from it soaked the crust and ran all over the oven. I use Hellman's or Kraft when I make this now.

Yield

6

Author

The Appalachian Tale Jimmy Proffitt

Prep time

10 Min

Cook time

40 Min

Inactive time

30 Hour

Total time

30 H & 50 M

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Squash Pie

With a crisp and flaky bottom crust and a cheesy top, this pie will be your prize side dish.

Ingredients

For the crust

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup cold lard
• 4 tablespoons of ice water

For the filling

• 3 medium yellow squash, halved and sliced
• 2 medium zucchini squash, halved and sliced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 tablespoon bacon grease or oil (or lard)
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (reserve 1/4 cup)

Instructions

1. You want your crust ingredients to be as cold as possible. Sift together your flour and salt. Cut in the lard until it resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle in 3 tablespoons of the ice water and stir. Dough should come together pretty quickly. If needed, add a little more ice water until it begins to form and pulls off the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead slightly until it comes together and you can form a round about two inches thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.
2. While the dough is chilling, cut your squash lengthwise and slice about 1/4 inch thick, and dice the onion. In a hot skillet, bring the bacon grease or oil up to heat and add the squash and onion. Saute' until the onions become translucent and the squash browns slightly. Remove from heat. 
3. When the dough has chilled enough, roll it out on a well floured surface large enough to fill an 8x8 square pan or 9-10 inch deep dish pie pan.
4. Assemble the pie by spreading the reserved 1/4 cup of mozzarella cheese. Spread the squash mixture on top. Mix the mayonnaise and remaining cheese. Spread the mayo mixture on top, going all the way to the edges of the crust. Trim and fold under any excess crust.
5. Bake at 325 for 40 minutes or until the cheese begins to brown. You can turn the temperature up the last couple of minutes to brown the cheese slightly.
6. Remove from oven and let sit for 5 minutes. Cut and serve.

Nutrition Facts

Calories

651.59

Fat (grams)

54.01

Sat. Fat (grams)

14.59

Carbs (grams)

31.78

Fiber (grams)

2.58

Net carbs

29.20

Sugar (grams)

4.23

Protein (grams)

10.22

Sodium (milligrams)

563.14

Cholesterol (grams)

47.65

The Appalachian Tale

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