We finally harvested some of the beautiful heirloom squash we planted in our vegetable garden from les olivades. The “courge de la St. Jean” is a local variety that Daniel Vuillon helped us discover, and was traditionally used to make the provencal soup “au pistou.”
Joshua worked with it to create a rustic quiche “torta” that was absolutely delicious. You can try this recipe with any sort of squash or pumpkin you find at your local market, this particular variety is somewhere between a zucchini and a french “potimarron” or red kuri squash in taste.
We also experimented using the squash in our cake bread recipe from last year and it was too good.
Squash Torta
Yield: 1 torta
Ingredients:
4 cups squash, grated
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon buter
3 leeks, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons rosemary, minced
3/4 cup parmesan, grated
to taste sea salt and fresh ground black pepper
2 pate brise, prepared
1 egg, whipped
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 350F.
Grate enough squash to equal four cups. Place in a colander and sprinkle with salt – let stand for one hour over a plate. Rinse the squash and ring out the excess water. Set aside.
In a large sauté pan, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the leeks, sprinkle with sea salt and cook until golden, but not brown or sticking to the pan. Add the garlic and rosemary and cook another three minutes.
In a large bowl, mix the squash, leeks, and parmesan cheese. Generously season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
On a cookie sheet, roll out the first prepared crust over a fresh sheet of parchment paper. Place the filling in the center of the crust, leaving a 1″ inch border. Place the second prepared crust over the filling. Fold the edges inward, lightly pressing to seal the torta. Brush with a thin layer of egg and place in the oven. Bake until golden, about one hour.
