Belmont Village Quarterly Newsletter on Senior Living

A Day of Comfort and Sweetness

The American Pie Council has declared January 23, 2010 to be National Pie Day,
a day dedicated to the celebration of pie.  The council encourages celebrating with random acts of “pieness,” a perfect opportunity to share the joys of pie with friends and neighbors.  In observance of this special day, we put out a call for recipes among the management teams at all of our communities.

The pies came pouring in - favorite hot and cold weather recipes for both sweet and savory pies, each more delicious-sounding than the last.  The choice wasn’t easy, but in the end, we only had room to print two: one savory and one sweet.  Enjoy!

Italian Spinach Pie
By: Julie Hiestand,
Community Relations
Belmont Village of Buffalo Grove, www.buffalogrove.belmontvillage.com

Yield: 8 servings
Prep Time: 10 min.
Cook Time: 40 min.

1 (16 oz.) container of part-skim ricotta cheese
1 pkg. (10 oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained

1 cup shredded, low-moisture, part-skim mozzarella cheese
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 jar (7 oz.) roasted red peppers, well drained and chopped
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 tsp. dried oregano leaves

Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix all ingredients until well blended.  Pour into greased
9-inch pie plate. Bake 40 minutes or until center is set.

Nutrition information per serving provided by J. Hiestand:

Calories: 150              Total Fat: 8g           Saturated Fat: 4g
Cholesterol: 125mg    Sodium: 450mg       Carbohydrate:  6g
Dietary Fiber: 1g        Sugar: 2g               Protein: 15g

Black Bottom Raspberry Cream Pie
By: Ashley Kinnison, Activity Programs Coordinator
Belmont Village Cardiff by the Sea, www.cardiffbythesea.belmontvillage.com

Yield: 8-10 servings
Note: Pie filling must be chilled overnight before topping is added.

Crust
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
1 ¾ cups crushed chocolate wafer cookies (about 30 cookies from one 9-oz. pkg)
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
¼ cup sugar

Pre-heat oven to 350° F. Spray a 9-inch glass pie dish with nonstick spray. Blend cookie crumbs, butter and sugar in a medium bowl.  Press the mixture evenly over the bottom and up the sides (not on the rim) of the prepared dish.  Bake crust until set, about 10 minutes, then cool. Chill crust for 30 minutes.

Filling
½ cup sugar
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 ½ cups whole milk, divided
2 large egg yolks
1 large egg
4 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter

Combine sugar, cocoa and cornstarch in a heavy, medium-sized saucepan; whisk to blend well.  Gradually add ¼ cup milk, whisking until cornstarch dissolves. Whisk in remaining 2 ¼ cups milk, then egg yolks and egg.  Stir over medium-high heat until pudding thickens and boils, about 8 minutes.  Remove from heat.  Add chocolate and butter; whisk until melted and smooth.  Spread pudding in prepared crust.  Press plastic wrap onto pudding to cover and chill pie overnight.

Topping
3 – ½ pint containers of raspberries
1 cup chilled whipping cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Peel plastic wrap off of chilled pie.  Cover chocolate layer with raspberries, pointed side up, pressing lightly into chocolate to adhere (some berries will be left over). Beat cream, sugar, and vanilla in a medium bowl until peaks form; spread over berries on pie.  Arrange remaining berries atop cream.  Chill pie at least 1 hour and up to 4 hours.

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