winter or hard squash
spinach (fresh or frozen)
white onions
garlic (optional)
olive oil
butter
eggs
milk
prebaked pie shell (preferably deep dish type)

SPICES:

salt
ground white pepper
curry powder (optional)
cinnamon (optional)
Mexican (optional)

.. Bottle of red wine.. Preferably Italian, Spanish or Napa. Open the wine and allow it to breathe. Pour a large glass and take a spill, now another.. OK.. Time to cook..

Note: Refills are optional during the cooking!!

Cut onions into medium sized pieces. Heat a heavy skillet and add a small amount of olive oil to the pan. Add the onions and allow them to start to fry, lower the heat and cover. You will want to let them cook very slowly until they are caramelized, after this has occurred add a pat of butter, turn up the butter and allow them to brown. When they are close to completion you can add some finely chopped garlic. When finished turn off the heat, leaving the onions in the pan.

Cut the unpeeled squash into quarters and either steam or microwave until pulp is tender. It is best to cool before proceeding. Scoop out the pulp and mash like you were making mashed potatoes, add some butter, salt (optional) and milk. But DO NOT make them too creamy. Prefer to have them on the dry side.

If you are using fresh spinach, thoroughly wash and clean. Cut off the stems and blanch the leaves, only a very short time, remove then chop, then squeeze the chopped leaves to remove any access water.

IF frozen spinach... microwave until defrosted, and remove access liquid as above.

Reheat the large skillet that you have used for the onions and add some butter, when melted, stir in your desired spices, then add the squash and cook on low the heat for a few minutes making sure to stir it so it will not burn. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl, add the spinach and mix.

Beat some eggs with a touch of milk until they are thoroughly beaten. It is best to allow the squash & spinach mixture to cool a bit so the hot mixture does not cook the eggs when you add them. So after it cools a bit add the eggs and thoroughly mix. Test so taste and add any needed spices.

Place the mixture in a deep pie shell and place in a 325°F oven and bake until the top becomes brown.

If you like you can sprinkle with some grated hard cheese a few minutes before removing to add a bit of color and flavor.

Serve with nice fresh green salad.

Submitted by: Tim in China