Torta di Riso

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, divided
3 cups chopped leeks
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cooked rice
1 1/2 cups finely chopped cooked spinach, squeezed dry
3/4 cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pinch cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Brush a pie plate with 1 tablespoon olive and dust with 1 tablespoon Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Heat remaining olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir leeks with a pinch of salt in hot oil until leeks are soft and sweet, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir garlic into leeks and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Stir leek mixture, rice, spinach, 3/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, eggs, salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and nutmeg together in a bowl. Transfer spinach-rice mixture to the prepared pie dish and smooth the surface with a spatula; dust the top with remaining 1 tablespoon Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

Bake in the preheated oven until torta is lightly browned around the outside and firm to the touch, 35 to 40 minutes.

*** Notes: I doubled the recipe, used different vegetables (1 large red pepper, 1 large green pepper; about 2 cups of peas, 1 large onion in place of leeks), and subbed some shredded cheese for about half of the parmesan. I also added some milk (w/o measuring) since the rice looked too dry. It probably totaled about 1/2 cup to 1 cup. The results were very good. I think the dish would have been much too dry without the milk.