Crustless Spinach Portobello Pie

I decided to try my hand at culinary improvisation. I'm not a huge fan of pie crust. I get that you need something to act as a foundation for all the good parts of pies, but I usually bypass the top crust of double-crust pies and start digging in at the level of the filling. And, working with phyllo dough is off-the-charts annoying. So, I conjured up the idea of using portobello mushrooms as the foundation for a spinach pie.
Ingredients:

4 portobello mushrooms, stems removed

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, separated

1 small chopped onion

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 pkg chopped spinach, thawed, squeezed dry

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon Greek seasoning mix (thyme, dill, mace, cinnamon, basil, fennel, rosemary)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1/2 cup low fat Ricotta cheese

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Infuse 2 tablespoons of the olive oil with a parmesan herb mixture to brush on the portobellos. I broiled them cap side up on an uncoated cookie sheet, just long enough to dehydrate them, about 10 minutes.
Saute the onion and garlic in the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and set aside.

Mix together the egg, seasoning mix, Ricotta cheese and lemon juice. I added the sauteed onions and garlic to the spinach, added the egg mixture and stirred to blend well.
Arrange the portobello mushrooms on the bottom of a pie plate and spoon the spinach mixture on top. Top with the Parmesan cheese and bake in the oven at 350 degrees until heated through and cheese is melted.


Disclaimer: I'm an amateur cook, novice gardener and frustrated writer... photography is not my gig — at all. But, I also don't believe in misleading my readers. The picture is my actual pie. Trust me, it tasted a lot better than it looked. I just wished I had thought to include artichokes! If you try that, let me know how it turned out.