Risotto Pie

Risotto pie is a vegetarian dish which is as pretty as it is satisfying. The roast peppers, fennel, and feta cheese give it all kinds of flavor. The risotto is tangy and rich, even though the dish is extremely low in fat. If you aren't a vegetarian, this makes a nice accompaniment to chicken or steak. If you are a vegetarian, it makes a great main dish.

Take 2 red bell peppers and split them lengthwise, then remove the seeds and membranes. Roast the peppers with a kitchen torch on a hardy cookie sheet, or roast them in the oven under the broiler until they are blackened and bubbly.


Scrape off the blackened skin and chop the peppers into flat pieces.

Slice 1 leek


Add 1 cup of white wine and 4 cups of vegetable broth to a large saucepan.

Bring Wine and Broth to a simmer. Keep it on the heat. In a separate saute pan, add Sliced Leek and 1 Clove Garlic (chopped), and 1 bulb of fennel (minced) to 2 T Olive Oil.

Add 2 cups of raw short-grained rice to the Leeks and Garlic in oil. Stir and cook until the rice looks clear. Add one cup of the hot broth at a time, allowing the rice to absorb the liquid while stirring before adding another cup.

Using about 12 sheets of phyllo dough, create a "crust" by misting each sheet with olive oil then draping it over a springform pan in a circle.

Layer with half the risotto rice, 1/2 lb of raw spinach leaves, 1/2 of the pepper pieces, 4oz feta cheese



Repeat the layers with the rest of the rice, 1/2 lb of spinach, the rest of the roast peppers, and 4oz of feta cheese. Fold the draped phyllo dough over the top of the filling.


Bake at 350ºF for 80 minutes or until center is hot and feta is melted.


Remove the outside of the pan and slice carefully


My son took this photo of me while I was cooking the risotto. Yes, I'm a happy person in the kitchen.