Southwestern Chipotle Cheddar Pie w/ Baby Kale

This evening I decided to make dinner that used up some of the ingredients I had available. I decided to make a quiche-like pie using baby kale and to give it a Southwestern theme. I had an 8-ounce container of fresh organic baby kale that I sauteed in a little olive oil for a few minutes until it was wilted and then tossed in some sliced green onions and fresh mushrooms and cooked a couple more minutes until tender. I had about 1 cup of leftover squash medley (zucchini, yellow squash and tomatoes) from the other night that I tossed in to the pan with the cooked  kale to heat slightly. I made an almond flour pie crust and added Chipotle chile powder to make it a bit spicy. I also added Chipotle to the egg mixture, as well as some sharp cheddar cheese. It turned out really good. As soon as I pulled it out of the oven, it looked like a storm was coming up really fast, so hubby and I decided to get our walk in first and then eat dinner afterwards. We got an hour walk in before dinner and it was so nice to just come in and sit down and eat when we came in. I snapped a couple photos below for you to see and posted the recipe I created as well. Enjoy!

Southwestern Chipotle Cheddar Pie w/ Baby Kale

INGREDIENTS:

Crust
2 cups almond flour
3 tablespoons cold butter, diced into small cubes
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon ground Chipotle Chile Pepper

Filling
8 oz. fresh baby kale, sauteed in a little olive oil until wilted and tender
1 cup diced cooked vegetables (I used zucchini, squash and mushrooms)
3 green spring onions, thinly sliced
1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon ground Chipotle Chile Pepper
1 teaspoon grated lime zest
Salt & black pepper, to taste
1-1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
4 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided
5 eggs (or 1-1/4 cups Egg Beaters)
1/2 cup half-n-half

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Place all crust ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cut butter, egg and Chipotle powder into flour with a dough/pastry blender or cutter until mixture resembles small pebbles and the flour is thoroughly moistened (the same way you prepare a pie crust).  Press crust mixture into pie dish or tart pan (I used a 10" pyrex pie dish).  Bake for approximately 15 minutes or until lightly browned; remove from oven and set aside.

Increase oven temp to 350 F degrees.  In the same medium bowl, place the well drained cooked kale and other cooked vegetables; add green onions, Chipotle, lime zest, salt, pepper, cheddar, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, eggs and half-n-half.  Mix until well combined.  Pour mixture into the lightly baked crust and top with remaining 2 tablespoons Parmesan and bake at 350 F for 15 minutes; lower oven temp to 325 F (so edge of crust doesn't over brown); bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until filling and eggs are set and cooked .  If center still seems a little jiggly, cook an additional few minutes.