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Potato Leek and Feta Pie is a simple vegetarian dish that combines an amazing filling of roasted potatoes, sautéed leeks, eggs, milk and feta; all housed within a simple pie crust. The taste is simply irresistible.
Potato Leek and Feta Pie – does’t it sounds like a perfect Greek and French marriage? Greeks love both their feta and their pies. French love both leeks and potatoes. So as a fan of both cuisines, it just makes sense to pile it all into one. Understand, I can eat leeks every day. I think they are excellent and any recipe that utilizes leeks is a recipe worth exploring to me.
I’m well aware that potato and leeks always pair nicely together. Who doesn’t like a potato and leek soup? That’s why, when this idea dawned on me I figured that maybe it will work well in a pie. I didn’t hesitate for long. And if you’re a regular reader of my blog, you probably know how much I love feta cheese. I can and do add it to everything. So if you haven’t already guessed it, I have to admit that this concept of mine came out absolutely deliciously. It can work both as a side dish or vegetarian full meal. It can also be used with a crust or without one, for a gluten free version.
Let met tell you a little story on how I got to know leeks. In traditional Polish cuisine they are used only as an addition to soups, but there are no individual dishes that which actually highlight leeks. But right after I graduated high school (many moons ago), I was looking for a vacation job and I found one in the kitchen of a French Bistro. My first day of work started at 7 am. I was told to go to the basement and clean up the leeks. I had never seen so many leeks. I was stunned. Who the heck needs so many leeks? What do they do with them here? I was puzzled.
I had also come to learn that day that leeks are pretty sandy, so you need to clean them well. If you don’t, you may hear the crunch of sand in between your teeth. Anyways, as instructed it took me couple of hours before I was done with the cleaning of the leeks. When I finally finished and came back to the kitchen, I was told that now I had to chop them. What? All these leeks? That was another shocker.
But I did what I was told to. Again it took me a couple of hours and cost me a couple of blisters on my fingers (yep, that might give you a better idea of how many leeks that needed to be chopped). It turned out that all these leeks were to be used for two dishes on the menu: Cream of Leek Soup, and Crepes with Leeks and Blue Cheese. Both were super popular menu items. After all this cooking was done, I tried both dishes and was amazed! The sweet and slightly mellow, but yet deep taste of the leeks was amazing and made me fall in love instantly.
Well back to the dish at hand, I had a leftover pie crust and wanted to use it for something other that a sweet pie. The idea of a pie layered with potatoes and delicious leeks, then smothered in a milk and egg sauce, with some added feta just spoke to me. If you are into leeks then try this recipe for a Potato Leek and Feta Pie. If you don’t have a clear stance on leeks then likewise, try this recipe for Potato Leek and Feta Pie. I dare you 🙂
Here’s what you will need to make this awesome Potato Leek and Feta Pie:
- store bought pie crust or home made (you can use the recipe for Perfect Pie Crust from Add a Pinch)
- potatoes
- leeks
- onion
- milk
- eggs
- sour cream
- fresh herbs: parsley and thyme
- salt and pepper
Scroll down for full printable recipe.
And if you happen to like this leeks you may want to try next my:
- Potato Leek Casserole which is to die for or;
- my Sourdough Mushroom Leeks and Bacon Leeks Stuffing for your next Thanksgiving;
- or my signature dish Braised Chicken with Carrots and Leeks.
Potato Leek and Feta Pie
Ingredients
- 1 lbs potatoes 8-10 small , peeled
- 2 leeks , white and green parts, chopped
- 1 onion , Spanish, chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme , chopped
- 2 tablespoon fresh parsley , chopped
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 eggs , beaten
- 1 cup milk
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- 1/2 cup feta cheese , crumbled (like Dodoni)
- Salt and pepper
- pie crust store bought
Instructions
For the crust
- If using pie crust, pre heat the oven to 450 F;
- Spread the crust on your sprayed, baking dish (round 9.5 inch);
- Bake it for 10 minutes;
- Remove crust from the oven and let it cool completely;
- Lower the oven temperature to 400F;
For the filling
- Peel and slice the potatoes, mix them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, spread on a baking sheet and place in the oven together with the crust and roast for about 10 minutes.In the alternative place peeled and sliced potatoes in a saucepan with salty water and cook until almost fully cooked (depending on potatoes 10 minutes);
- In a large saucepan heat up olive oil, add onions and cook for about 3-5 minutes;
- Add chopped leeks, thyme and parsley and cook until leeks are soft (7-10 minutes);
- Combine together milk, sour cream, eggs, feta cheese, salt and pepper and set aside;
- Once potatoes are done, add to the bottom of the baking dish;
- Season with salt and pepper;
- Pour 1/3 of the milk, sour cream, egg, feta mixture on top of the potatoes;
- Add leeks on top of the potatoes and spread evenly;
- Pour the remaining milk, sour cream, egg and feta mixture on top of the leeks and spread evenly;
- Place it in the 400F oven and bake for 25 minutes;
- Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published on January 21, 2015 and was since then updated to provide additional information.
If you like this dish you may also like this side dishes:
Potato Salad with Eggs and Pickles
New Dill Potatoes with Scallion Cream Sauce
Maple Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Candid Pecans, Craisins and Chives
Love leeks but I always get some sand left in….I’ll have to get a lesson from you!
Not a problem 🙂
Loved the idea. I made 2 different pies. One with a crust and the recipe above. And another without crust and Substituted the potato for cauliflower to make a lower calorie pie. They both took twice the amount of time to cook in the oven. Once they were done, it was good, but could have used maybe a little more feta, and a bit more seasoning. Great idea though, just needs a little tweaking before the next time I make it!
Great, thanks for checking my recipe Kaitlin.
This wold make a great side dish or main meal! Love all the flavors in it!
Thank you Kristina!
What a great recipe! I always have problem cleaning leeks as it’s not an easy task especially when you have loads of them. I woudn’t wanna be in your shoes there I tell you that much :).
To be quite honest, I buy mine in Trader Joe’s and there is not a lot to clean. They trim them pretty well. But the good way of cleaning them is to just chop them and add them to the bowl of water. All the sand will go down on the bowl. Then you use the slotted spoon to take the leeks out on a paper towel and you’re done 🙂
Mmm, some of my favorite ingredients – I love that you thought to make a pie. saving to try this one soon…
Thanks Kristina!
I think I have all the ingredients handy – yesss! This is gorgeous – loving all the vibrant greens 🙂
Perfect! I hope you will like it!
Yummy! I love how simple and healthy this is! I cannot wait to try this one. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks Luci
Halved the recipe, used no crust & dried thyme, still fabulous. I would definitely make it again. I put parchment in a bread pan & baked. Excited to have a recipe to use my leeks from the garden in.
Thanks Angela! I made this recipe without the crust once as well and I loved it. Dried thyme would definitely work too, especially in winter.I’m so happy you liked this recipe!