Cheese Pie - Ridiculously Easy, No Fail Recipe (2024)

About: I'm crazy about gardening, although I've got a LOT to learn. I like the whole idea of suburban homesteading, and not just because I hate mowing the lawn. Canning and DIY are great. I also spend way too much ti… More About mcarlson9 »

Who likes pizza? Everyone. Who makes pizza? Nah, that's too hard. Ok, admittedly, I have made pizza on many occasions, but making the dough takes lots of time and effort. My favorite recipe takes more than a day as you let the dough slowly ferment. I just get home from work, pizza is really out of the question unless I planned ahead.

What about an omelet? Ok, that's definitely on the other end of the spectrum. Easy. I can throw it together in 10 minutes and be eating. But that seems... I dunno, maybe not quite epic enough for dinner. Sure, I've done it, but it's like admitting the workday won. You put an omelet on the table for dinner and the family will say, "Rough day at work?"

In between these extremes lives a creation that combines the best aspects of each. It's easier to make than an omelet, but it's an event like pizza. In this shadowy nether-world between the two dwells the cheese pie. How is this divine creation so largely unknown? Not sure, but I can help undo that with this instructable.

You probably have what you need to make one in the fridge right now. How easy is that?

• 1 cup milk (skim? whole? Don't care, doesn't matter. You might be able to do it with cream or almond milk, who knows?)
• 3/4 cup flour (all purpose. Bread flour or cake flour would work, but I'm skeptical about just whole wheat)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp oregano (try this first, add more if you like, or other spices if you want next time)
• 1 egg (chicken egg. Quail egg not big enough, Ostrich egg too big)
• 4 oz (113 g) cheese of your choice (that said, you really must try it first with muenster. Wow!)
• 2.5 oz (73 g) diced and sliced meat of your choice (hard salami is a 100% sure thing, but try other stuff if you want)

Don't have sliced meat? Leave it out. Want to put in something else? Go for it. But these are the basic building blocks.

What next? Honestly not much. Preheat the over to 450° F (which google tells me is 232° C).Do this first because the rest takes like 1 minute. You see the stuff from the ingredients list? Dump it in a bowl and stir. Clumps of flour gone? Then hit a pie plate with non-stick cooking spray, and then dump from the bowl to the pie plate. Now wait for the oven to get up to temp.

If you really want to channel your favorite cooking show star, you can add the dry ingredients to the bowl first and stir. Yeah, baby, get that nice even distribution of oregano. I also tore up the slices of cheese so that they spread out a bit more in the final product, but I'm not really even sure that is necessary.

Oven up to temp? Toss that pie plate in and stand there drooling for 20 minutes. Not 22 minutes. 20. Check it after 20. It should look pretty much like the above pic. If not, give it another 3-5 min. Serve hot from the oven.

Now, so far I've been the number one superfan for the cheese pie. It's a great dish, and it deserves all the praise I can give it. But there is one tiny, barely worth mentioning downside. If not served immediately it deflates a bit, which detracts somewhat from the aesthetic appeal. But the flavor is still outstanding.

Ok, dinner is done. The family has just finished their standing ovation, followed by handshakes, and slaps on the back. Tonight, you are a hero. No doubt this recipe will be in your favorites and get into a heavy rotation. I mean, how easy is it? Damned easy. My whole instructable could have been:

"Mix 1 c milk, 3/4 c flour, 1 egg, salt, oregano, 2.5 oz salami, 4 oz muenster. Bake 20 min at 450."

So just to jazz it up a bit I'm providing ALTERNATE INGREDIENTS. Go find those old D&D dice or just use an online random number site.

Cheese

1. Muenster (the original, and my favorite)
2. American Processed Cheese Slices
3. Cheddar
4. Swiss
5. Havarti
6. Bleu
7. Gorgonzola
8. Wensleydale (if not a Wallace and Grommit fan, use gouda)
9. Mozzarella
10. Velveeta
11. Feta
12. Provolone

Meat

1. Hard Salami (love it!)
2. Pepperoni
3. Ham
4. Chicken Loaf
5. Bologna
6. Capicola
7. Roast Beef
8. Scrambled Hamburger (Turkey if that's too much effort)
9. Prosciutto
10. Thin sliced spam
11. Bacon
12. Pastrami

Other

1. Sauteed onions
2. Hot peppers
3. Bell peppers
4. Scallions (or Green onions if you prefer. Wait, are they the same thing?)
5. Tomatoes
6. Zucchini
7. Spinach
8. Kale
9. Mushrooms
10. Broccoli
11. Asparagus (that may be too fancy)
12. Black Olives

Anyone have any good ideas for ingredients? Post a pic if you make it.