Buona Pasqua - “Happy Easter”

                                                       Pizza Rustica

Eastertime always brings back great memories of visiting my Nan Mary. Immediately after Mass, all the family would congregate at her house for a lovingly prepared meal to celebrate the Resurrection and of course, to feast. On Easter Sunday, we were expected to visit Nan and present to her the palm we obtained while attending Palm Sunday mass the prior week. Hopefully, you followed this pre-requisite. The Palm was meant to show respect, bless the table, and of course to prove that you went to church. No one was exempt.  One year, Nans longtime friend and neighbor Anna Ragusa, was unable to visit and bring the required Palm. No excuses. Nan felt that even if Anna wasn’t well, she only lived across the street. No excuses. It was a breach of tradition, and relations became strained. We lost access to Anna’s fig tree during the dispute. I thought this to be a bit harsh. We all got the message loud and clear. Many years later, my son Alex who was young at the time, answered the door and was given some Palm by our neighbor. He was told to give it to me. He then asked me why she gave him these “weeds.” I needed to do better. At this point, Nan was long gone and didn’t know of my shortcomings.

As a matter of tradition, this Rustica was the “crown jewel” of our holiday table. The word pizza means pie. Pizza Rustica consists of various meats, cheeses, and eggs which encrusted in flaky pastry. Somewhat like an Italian quiche but richer and denser. Each year upon our arrival to Nans house, the Rustica, already prepared in the customary rectangular pan covered with a floured cloth. We waited eagerly for the unveiling of our traditional Easter appetizer. It was at this point that Nan dipped the palm into holy water and while waving the wet fronds over the table, blessed our family, our food and expressed gratitude to our Lord Jesus Christ. This anointing of the table was spiritual and had specific intent only she could seem to deliver.

The pie was then cut into rectangular pieces oozing with savory goodness with everyone requesting “a piece to take home.” She always made enough to feed the Holy Land if need be. These are how traditions begin are kept, and beautiful memories created.

 

                                                             Pizza Rustica

Note: Please do not be afraid of making the dough.  The filling is my Nans recipe, and the dough recipe is an adaptation from Nigella Lawson’s cookbook, and it is foolproof!!. You will need a 9” springform pan.

 

Pastry Dough:

2 cups all-purpose flour

9 tablespoons cold unsalted butter cut into cubes

2 egg yolks

6 Tablespoons of Iced Water

Heaping teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoons of Sugar

Filling:

6 large eggs, beaten

6 egg whites whipped into peaks

1/2 cup grated pecorino cheese

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 pound of ricotta cheese

1 cup cubed salami

1 cup cubed ham

½ cup cubed dry salami

4 links of Italian sausage removed from casing, fried and crumbled

Pepper to taste

1 TBLS breadcrumbs

 

 

Glaze:

1 egg yolk

2 TBS milk

1 tsp coarse salt

 

Dough:

Add flour and butter to a dish. Place dish in the freezer for 10 minutes. Stir together yolks, water, salt and place cup in the refrigerator. When the dough is chilled, put the flour, butter, and sugar into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mix looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Add the egg yolks, 6 TBLS of water and salt. Pulse until dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.

Divide into two discs, one a little larger than the other and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in freezer for 30 minutes. The larger disc will be to line the bottom of the springform pan.

 

FILLING:

Grease a 9-inch springform pan. Roll the larger piece of dough to cover the bottom and sides, leaving a one-inch overhang. Sprinkle with the tablespoon of breadcrumbs. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F,  then place a cookie sheet in the oven.

In a large bowl add the cooled browned sausage with all of the above filling ingredients. Mix thoroughly. Fold in whipped egg whites. Pour the filling into the chilled pastry-lined springform pan. Top with the second piece of rolled dough. Turn over the edges to crimp decoratively. If there are any leftover dough scraps, I use a cookie cutter and add a design to the top.

Just before baking, brush the top with milk/egg wash. Sprinkle with coarse salt and prick the dough with a fork here and there to make steam holes. Place pan on the hot cookie sheet cook for 10 minutes at 400 degrees and then turn down oven to 350 degrees for another 50 minutes. Allow cooling for approx.  30 minutes.

Can be eaten hot or lukewarm.