Greek Zucchini Pie - Kourkouto
This delicious Greek pie comes from my blogger friend Peter at Kalofagas, and I can’t thank him enough for this recipe. I’ve made this most delicious zucchini pie called Kourkouto in Greek many times since Peter posted it on his blog and I decided to share the recipe with my readers.
According to Peter, this pie “is somewhere between a quiche and a frittata, utilizing Greek ingredients to offer up a flavourful, light main course for lunch…The dish’s title contains the word Kourkouto (from Kourkouti), which means a “batter” and a major component of the dish is flour.”
Kourkouto is easy to make and is absolutely delicious. My slight change to the recipe was the use of parsley instead of dill - I tried the recipe both with dill and parsley, but liked it with parsley more. I believe it’s a matter of taste, so use any fresh herb you like. Also, when I don’t have Kasseri or Mild Cheddar, I use Mozzarella cheese and it works perfectly well too.
Peter, thank you for the recipe!
GREEK ZUCCHINI PIE - KOURKOUTO
Slightly adapted from Peter’s Kalofagas blog
Original recipe by Dina Nikolaou
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cups finely chopped green onion
3 zucchinis (Mexican or Italian), about 1 1/2 pounds, diced
5 large eggs
1 cup of strained Greek yogurt (if not available, use plain yogurt, drained of its liquid on a cheese cloth)
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
1 cup Kasseri or Mild Cheddar cheese, grated (If none is available, use mozzarella)
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
ground pepper to taste
sweet paprika to taste (and for garnish)
slices of zucchini rounds (for finishing)
Grease a 15 X 10 baking tray with vegetable oil.
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and diced zucchini, sprinkle them with some salt and saute over medium heat for about 20 minutes, or until soft (but not mushy, they should hold their shape at the end!) and have most of the liquid evaporate (should reduce to about half). Take off the heat and reserve.
Preheat the oven to 350F.
In a large bowl, whisk your eggs with a wire whisk or a mixer for a couple of minutes until mixed well. Add the yogurt and stir in to mix. Add the flour and baking powder and mix in.
Add the crumbled and grated cheeses and sauteed vegetables and mix to incorporate. Add some ground black pepper and sweet paprika. Have a taste and adjust seasoning (probably will not need any salt).
Stir in the chopped fresh parsley and pour the mixture into your greased baking dish.
Top with round slices of zucchini and sprinkle some sweet paprika over the entire mixture.
Place on the middle rack of your pre-heated oven and bake for approximately 1 hour, or until golden on top.
Allow to rest for about 15 minutes and then cut up into slices.
Serve warm or at room temperature. It makes a perfect snack appetizer when cold, too.
I
42 Comments Add your own
1. diva | February 11th, 2009 at 4:35 pm
ah! beautiful pie. splendidly done. I wish you could send not the recipe, but a slice of pie, my way
i’m so pleased food blogs exist - it’s a great endless resource for trustworthy recipes! x
2. Layla | February 11th, 2009 at 5:44 pm
Looks so delicious, I am always looking for new ways to use zucchini and I love this one!
3. Mediterranean Turkish Cook | February 11th, 2009 at 7:39 pm
Selamlar Feride,
Pie guzel gorunuyor. Bizim borekleri andiriyor biraz. Ellerine saglik.
4. EU MULHER | February 11th, 2009 at 8:03 pm
Farida dear friend, I put in comments in my blog the option of anonymous so you can visit me and comment.
I did that zebra cake, only changed the recipe and did a body that I knew how. The explanation of how to make learned wyth you on your blog.
That cake you made was very tasty.
Thousand kisses for you.
5. Aysegul - Ny'S Delight | February 11th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
This look so delicious and very simple and ohh so satisfying. It is so different from traditional pie recipes. Well done! Ellerine Saglik..
6. Aparna | February 11th, 2009 at 10:30 pm
This is beautiful, Farida. In fact I made some zucchini bread and have some zucchini left. Now I know what to do with it. Shall definitely give this a try.
7. grazi | February 12th, 2009 at 1:40 am
it’s look delicious !!!
8. Marysol | February 12th, 2009 at 12:38 pm
Fari, that looks so good. But then, I’ve never met a Greek dish I didn’t like
Must. try. this. one!
Thanks pal.
9. Matin | February 12th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
I love Peter’s cooking too and your version looks wonderful as well Farida:-)
Love
Matin
10. Cynthia | February 12th, 2009 at 2:25 pm
Farida my dear, oh my, these look absolutely delicious and I love how they look when baked and decorated with the the slice of zucchini.
11. Nirvana | February 13th, 2009 at 2:31 am
Farida these look fantastic — a perfect brunch recipe
12. Maya | February 13th, 2009 at 4:47 am
Another recipe to be bookmarked
The leftovers would be wonderful too ( if there are any left)
13. Soma | February 13th, 2009 at 6:17 am
That looks lovely. Love the slices & the way u have done it:0)
14. Rosie | February 13th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
Farida that looks absolutely gorgeous!! I really like the way you have sliced it and it looks so temptingly mouth watering
Rosie x
15. yasmeen | February 13th, 2009 at 6:19 pm
Pretty Pie,bookmarked!
Please trail back to my blog for a token of gratitude
16. Peter | February 13th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
Geia sou Farida and thank you so much for sharing the Kourkouto recipe. It’s a quick & easy offering and it always pleases guests.
I’m delighted this has become a favourite and it appears some of your readers will try it too! Thanks for sharing.
17. Chuck | February 13th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
Farida … OMG that pie looks good! I have to make this. I’m having a poker night tomorrow, I think I’ll make this. Yummy!
18. zerrin | February 14th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
Oh my friend, this is a very good way to give some taste to zucchini. I find this innocent vegetable a bit mouldy when cooked alone. But as a result of my experiments, I found that dill is the great helper of zucchini to be tasty, so I think I’ll put dill as in original recipe. Thanks so much for helping us eating zucchini
19. Bren | February 15th, 2009 at 10:01 am
Farida, I think these are the best looking pies I’ve seen! great job!
20. Maninas | February 15th, 2009 at 3:02 pm
Looks stunning. Very elegant indeed.
21. Liliana | February 17th, 2009 at 5:37 am
Farida, this pie looks so delicious. Wish I could have a slice of it now. The zucchini pie I make is more like the Italian version of this one.
Thanks for sharing. Now I have to go out buy the Greek yogurt and cheese and make this version.
22. Thom Richards | February 18th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
Hi!
In the past I didn’t like zucchini in any form. Well, I have grown to like them because of recipes like yours. Since my wife and I grow them every year, we now know what to do with them besides give them away. Best to you and your family!
23. My Comfort Food | February 19th, 2009 at 10:44 am
A usual this looks absolutely delicious. I love zucchini and this is a perfect dish.
24. Kasey | February 19th, 2009 at 5:59 pm
Farida, I’m so excited to find a recipe with Kasseri cheese! I’ve been buying it at my cheese shop and loving it. Excited to put it into something creative!
25. farida | February 20th, 2009 at 11:14 am
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR COMMENTS, DEAR FRIENDS.
26. Cheese on Board | Give Re&hellip | February 21st, 2009 at 1:09 pm
[...] favorites. It was incredibly tasty. Another recipe which gives a yummy taste to zucchini was from Farida. We tried it last week and started to love zucchini thanks to her. You can find the recipe [...]
27. Mrs Ergül | February 21st, 2009 at 9:37 pm
Selam abla! WoW!! The finished pie looks so good! My husband will definitely drool over this!
28. Navita Hakim | February 22nd, 2009 at 8:28 pm
loved the look of the pie…n m getting all sorts of ideas now…i think i will try it with some other veggie..err…not a zuchchini fan…i like the indian cucumbers better.
29. Lubna Karim | February 24th, 2009 at 3:51 am
Wow simply scrummy.
30. Arlette | February 24th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
Farida
this look amazingly delicious…
I am going to prepare it soon.
we love zucchini, I posted a zucchini
gratin and I do zucchini dip similiar to baba ghanouj
this is something new to try.
thanks
31. Medena | February 25th, 2009 at 7:36 am
Wow, looks so delicious and pretty too!
My dear, you have no idea how often I make your tandori bread, now my family, when given choice always says “make the one from that pretty lady in CA” :))) Never mind that I can make dozens of kinds of bread, you always win!
Guess what? I use that bread recipe for pizza dough, and everyone says I now make best pizza in the world!!! Seriously, did you try? If not, you so should!
My kids love making it, and the dough is just amazing! I shall post about it next time, I usually make it in the evening, and there is usually no time for pictures, because they can’t wait to eat it! :)Thank you again!!! I can’t wait to buy your book!
32. iulia | February 26th, 2009 at 12:40 am
Wow… it is very delicious and beautifully presented everything what you cook!
33. farida | February 26th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR COMMENTS!
Medena, so glad you like my bread recipe. I thought of using that dough for pizza but haven’t tried it that way. Will sure do:)
Iulia, welcome! thanks for your nice words.
34. Seena | March 1st, 2009 at 2:16 am
Farida, I missed you! thought you were busy with writing cookbook…
This pie looks pretty!
Then what about you, doing well?..
35. TBC | March 3rd, 2009 at 2:50 pm
The pie looks really good, Farida, especially with the zucchini rounds to top it off.
36. TBC | March 3rd, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Just wanted to add- every time I come here, I’m reminded of the zebra cake that I’m yet to bake.
37. farida | March 3rd, 2009 at 2:57 pm
SEENA: I missed you, too. I’ve been busy with cookbook and still am:) It never ends:) Hope you are doing well.
TBC: Glad you like it. :)) I hope you get to bake zebra cake, it’s super fun. cheers.
38. Pille Petersoo | May 25th, 2009 at 10:54 pm
That looks extremely delicious - and I love your step-by-step photos!,
39. ilhama | January 26th, 2010 at 3:33 pm
i like this one
40. AZ Cookbook - Food From A&hellip | April 29th, 2010 at 8:01 am
[...] with potato breads, but this is no bread. This is something different. Its texture it is more like kourkouto I am still addicted to, but it comes in a different shape and tastes differently. The loaf set [...]
41. Sara | October 20th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
I just made it and this is just a dream of a dish!! Thanks a lot for the recipe! All of the recipes on this site seem to be fabulous!
42. Sebzeli dereotlu pay – &hellip | August 29th, 2012 at 11:32 pm
[...] Feride’nin o ?aheser yemek sayfas? AZ Cookbook’ta payla?t??? “kabakl? pay” (zucchini pie) geldi akl?ma. Daha önce denemi?tim ve Feride’nin bütün tariflerinde oldu?u gibi enfes [...]
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