Torta Pasqualina, a savory double-crusted pie crammed with greens, artichokes and onerous boiled eggs, originated in Genoa within the 1500s, however has grow to be a convention throughout Italy within the years since its creation. Our spinach-based recipe comes from Calabrian meals running a blog duo Cristina Bruno and Giuliano Bronzi of Vuoi Assaggiare.
On condition that it’s sometimes served at Easter, the pie is wealthy with Christian symbolism. It was initially made with 33 sheets of puff pastry to symbolize every year of Jesus’s life. (That mentioned, it doesn’t have to have dozens of layers of crust to be scrumptious and these days, it’s usually made with fewer.) Cristina and Giuliano‘s pie makes use of a laminated rough puff pastry as the bottom, for a slice that’s flaky and buttery and fewer time intensive than traditional puff pastry. In search of much more of a shortcut? Use puff pastry discovered within the frozen part of your grocery store.
The filling – greens, artichokes, eggs and cheese–additionally carries that means. The eggs that function so prominently stand for fertility, and being born once more, the best way Christ was mentioned to be. Artichokes, as soon as thought of greens befitting the the Aristocracy, are on this manner luxurious sufficient to make the lower for an Easter feast.
As stunning as it’s scrumptious, while you slice into this pie, you’ll reveal a tough boiled egg surrounded by the sensible inexperienced of spinach and artichokes. Need to be certain that every slice is a stunner? To know the place greatest to disclose your eggs, flippantly rating the highest of your pastry with a butter knife earlier than baking.
Notes: When you’d favor to make use of store-bought pastry as an alternative of creating your individual, search for sheets of frozen puff pastry at your native grocery retailer.
Time
4.5 hours
Yield
one 24-centimeter pie
Tools
stand mixer
Ooni Karu 16 Pizza Oven
24x4cm (9×2”) cake pan
Elements
For the pastry
5½ cups (650 grams) ‘00’ flour
1 cup and 1 tablespoon (250 milliliters) water
2 teaspoons (12 grams) salt
¾ cup (165 grams) softened butter
1¾ cups (400 grams) chilly butter, cubed
For the filling:
5 eggs
1 cup (50 grams) onion, sliced
16¾ cups (500 grams) spinach
6 artichoke hearts, about 200 grams
½ cup (50 grams) grated Parmesan cheese
1¼ cups (300 grams) sheep’s milk ricotta
1 teaspoon (5 milliliters) extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons (28 grams) for sautéing
2 teaspoons (5 grams) floor nutmeg
5 teaspoons (5 grams) marjoram
For the egg wash
1 egg, overwhelmed
Technique
Mix flour, salt, water and softened butter within the bowl of a stand mixer and blend on the bottom velocity for 2 and a half minutes. Add the chilly, cubed butter and blend for one more 60 seconds. The butter ought to now be integrated into the dough, however not fully absorbed.
Place the dough on a flour-dusted countertop and dirt with extra flour. Utilizing your arms, form the dough right into a tough rectangle, taking care to not apply an excessive amount of stress.
Utilizing a flour-dusted rolling pin, stretch the dough forwards and backwards till it’s about 28 inches (70 centimeters) in size, dusting with flour if it turns into sticky.
Take one fringe of the dough and fold it a 3rd of the best way over the remainder of the dough. Then, carry the other aspect of the dough and stretch it over the primary fold, laying it on high to create three layers. From the aspect, you need to see three sections of dough on high of one another.
Roll it out once more lengthwise, ahead and backward till it’s about 28 inches (70 centimeters) in size.
Now, fold the dough 4 instances, first taking one fringe of the dough and folding it to the middle of the rectangle. Take the opposite edge and fold towards the middle so the perimeters of the dough now meet one another. Then, fold the whole piece in half, closing it as if it have been a guide.
Flatten it gently with the rolling pin to about 2 inches (5 centimeters) thick, wrap it fully in cling movie and place within the fridge for an hour.
After an hour’s relaxation, take away the dough from the fridge and repeat the 4 fold course of from the earlier step. Roll the dough out another time and make a closing 4 fold. Go away within the fridge coated in cling movie for no less than two hours (or in a single day, if you happen to can).
Take away the dough from the fridge and let it relaxation for 3 hours in a heat place.
Whereas your dough is resting, make the filling. Place 4 eggs in boiling water and cook dinner till onerous boiled, about 10 minutes. Slice your onion and fry in two separate pans with a tablespoon of olive oil every. Put the spinach in one of many pans, then add 2 tablespoons (30 milliliters) of water to wilt the spinach, cooking for about 5 minutes till the spinach is darkish inexperienced and gentle. Slice your artichoke hearts into skinny strips and add them to the opposite pan with the onion. Pour 10 milliliters over the onions and artichokes, shut the lid, and cook dinner till the artichokes are softened, about quarter-hour. As soon as gentle, pressure off any extra water.
In a big bowl, combine the grated Parmesan cheese and ricotta. Drizzle with a teaspoon (5 milliliters) of extra-virgin olive oil. Add grated nutmeg and marjoram, and a pinch of salt. Stir in onions, spinach, artichokes, and one egg.
After the three-hour relaxation, stretch out your dough to a diameter of roughly 47 inches (120 centimeters) and a thickness of ⅛ inch (½ centimeter),, dusting the pastry with flour as essential.. As soon as all of the pastry is stretched out, t use the cake pan as your information to chop out two 9-inch (24-centimeter) circles, which can kind the bottom and the highest of the pie.
Lower a sheet of baking paper or parchment paper to suit the underside of the cake pan. Drizzle a bit olive oil over the paper and unfold it out evenly with a brush. Place one of many circles of pastry on high of the parchment paper. It’ll climb up the perimeters of the pan, which can assist it hook up with the highest layer of pastry.
Take away the shells from the onerous boiled eggs by putting an egg in a glass, masking the highest together with your hand and shaking till the shell falls off in items. Place the filling combination on high of the pastry within the cake pan and unfold it out evenly.
Make 4 little hollows and set one egg into every of them.
Place one other sheet of pastry on high and brush with a overwhelmed egg.
To ensure every slice reveals the yellow and white of an egg, you may rating the highest of the pastry flippantly to information your cuts. Cowl with tinfoil.
Together with your fuel burner on excessive, preheat your Ooni Karu 16. When the infrared thermometer reveals 575°F (300°C), decrease the flame to the minimal and put the pie within the oven. Cook dinner for 40 minutes. Throughout this stage, the temperature will fall, stabilizing at 460°F (240°C).
After 20 minutes, flip the baking tray 180° to make sure an excellent bake. After 40 minutes, take away the tinfoil, then return the pie to the oven with the flame nonetheless on low for 6-7 minutes, turning the tray gently a couple of instances to brown all edges.
Take away the pie from the oven and permit it to chill for five minutes.
Lower into slices, revealing the entire eggs, then serve and revel in.
