Torta Pasqualina: the tasty recipe for making the double-crusted Italian Easter pie

Torta pasqualina is a savory Italian pie with a double crust that's usually served warm around Easter. Indeed, the Italian expression torta pasqualina means Easter pie in English. It is a vegetarian recipe very popular in Liguria region (in North-west of Italy), but appreciated and widespread throughout Italy.

This Italian Easter pie has a crispy shell of puff pastry which contains a rich, soft filling based on ricotta cheese, spinach or chards, spring onions and marjoram. On the inside together with the filling there are also the unbroken raw eggs which will be hard-boiled and visible once you cook and slice the pie.

With very ancient origins, the Italian torta pasqualina was already known in 1400. It is said it was considered as a dish with a strong symbolic value because of the eggs and the shell made from 33 sheets of pasta, a reference to the years of Jesus when he was crucified. Over the years Italian Easter Pie has lost a bit its Easter meaning and now it is made all year round, in versions that are also very different from the original.

The puff pastry was first prepared with a mixture of water, flour and olive oil, while the filling was based on chard and prescinsoeua (curd), a typical Genoese fresh cheese. Not easy to find outside the regional borders, today the Genoa cheese is mostly replaced with cow's milk ricotta cheese, well drained from its whey. In fact we have chosen to use the cow’s milk ricotta cheese, combining it with boiled spinach, and to prepare the puff pastry for the outer shell which, with its layered structure, allows to obtain a texture very similar to the original Ligurian recipe.

What to serve with Torta Pasqualina

You can serve torta pasqualina as a main dish together with an Easter salad, charcuterie and other typical Easter dishes such as casatiello and pizza rustica.

Tips for making Easy Italian Easter Pie

Remember to squeeze well the liquid out of the greens in order not to sweat the crust.

You should also score the top of the dough as it is a great steam vent which also signals well how to cut the cake.

You can also use homemade shortcrust pastry instead of puff pastry.

For gluten-free torta pasqualina, use a gluten-free puff pastry.

You can use spinach or chard for this recipe.

How to store Torta Pasqualina

You can store the torta pasqualina in the refrigerator, well covered with a sheet of cling film, for 2-3 days.

Once baked and completely cooled, you can also freeze Italian Easter Pie for 1-2 months – even already cut into slices.

How to make Torta Pasqualina

Clean and thinly slice the spring onions.

Collect them in a large pan with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and let them brown.

Add the spinach or chards, pressing it with your hands. Then close with the lid and let it cook for a few minutes.

Remove the lid, season with fine salt, black pepper and let the bottom dry so that the vegetables lose all their moisture.

Take the tenderest sprigs and leaves of marjoram, then chop finely. Add to spinach, allow to flavor, then turn off the heat and allow to cool completely.

Collect the cow’s milk ricotta cheese in a tightly meshed colander with a container underneath, then let all the excess liquid drain for at least an hour.

Transfer the cow’s milk ricotta cheese to a bowl, add the grated parmesan cheese and mix.

Add an egg and mix thoroughly.

Also mix in the cooked and now cold spinach with the spring onions and marjoram.

Cut a disc of parchment paper and place it at the base of a 22 centimeters diameter cake pan.

Then arrange the first disc of puff pastry, taking care to let the dough overflow outwards.

With the tines of a fork, prick the base of the puff pastry.

Stuff the pie with cow’s milk ricotta cheese and spinach mixture and level it on the surface.

With the back of a spoon, form 5 well-marked holes in the stuffing by exerting a discreet pressure, as if they were the petals of a flower.

Gently open 5 eggs, one at a time, and let them slide into their respective cavities.

Cut the second pastry disc so as to obtain a circle smaller than the surface of the mold.

Place the disc as a cover, being careful not to press in proximity to the eggs.

At this point fold the edges of dough overflowing inwards, pinching as if they were rags of fabric.

Brush the surface of the pie with the egg yolk, beaten with milk.

With a stick for skewers, pierce the surface of the puff pastry in the center and near the edges in order to let the steam escape and keep the puff pastry attached to the filling.

Bake the Italian Easter Pie in a preheated static oven at 200°C/390°F for about 40 minutes, monitoring the level of browning. Then lower the temperature to 180°C/350°F and continue for another 10-15 minutes.

Let the Italian Easter Pie cool for at least an hour, then turn it upside down on a serving dish.

Let the torta pasqualina rest for at least 6 hours to allow it to settle completely.

Slice, serve the torta pasqualina. Enjoy!