Also known as Italian Easter Pie, pizza rustica is the perfect treat to celebrate Easter. It’s a double-crusted pie filled to the brim with eggs, cured meats, and LOTS of cheeses. Every Easter, this traditional Italian dish is always present at our dinner table. I usually prepare this pizza on Good Friday to give it time to cool, then just serve it over the Easter weekend. It’s so delicious and so stunning! Once you master this pizza rustica recipe, you’ll be making it year-round.
Pizza rustica isn’t your usual pizza. It’s more like a quiche that’s stuffed with different kinds of meats and cheeses. I filled my homemade Italian pie with cubed ham, salami, and prosciutto. For that cheesy goodness, I used THREE kinds of Italian cheese: ricotta, provolone, and pecorino romano. And much like quiche, this Italian pizza pie also gets filled with eggs. If you want to make a vegetarian version, skip the meat and stuff the pie with veggies. I recommend including some zucchini, celery, sweet corn, and bell peppers.
All these delicious fillings are held together by a sturdy homemade pizza dough crust for a gorgeous presentation. Don’t worry. Making pizza dough is surprisingly easy! I added a dash of instant yeast to the mixture of all-purpose flour, olive oil, warm water, sugar, and salt. This will give the dough a nice structure even before baking.
It’s best to prepare this Easter pizza ahead of time as you still have to let it cool right after assembling it. I’m telling you, pizza rustica tastes more delicious when served cold! You can even make the whole pie a few days in advance and store it in the fridge for up to 4 days. Once you slice through the pie, you’ll see the layers of filling still beautifully intact.
Pizza rustica is delicious on its own. But I just love to serve this savory Easter pie with a fresh side salad to strike the perfect balance of savoriness and freshness.
How To Make Pizza Rustica (Italian Easter Pie)
This pizza rustica is filled with lots of meat, cheeses, and eggs. It’s then baked to a delicious perfection for the best Easter brunch dish!
Preparation: 20 minutes
Cooking: 2 hours
Rise Time: 2 hours
Chill Time: 1 day
Total: 1 day 4 hours 20 minutes
Serves:
Ingredients
For the Pizza Crust:
- 2 cups warm water
- 1 tbsp sugar
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp instant yeast
- 5½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tbsp salt
For the Filling:
- 10 large eggs
- 8 oz ham, boiled, cubed
- 16 oz ricotta cheese
- 8 oz pepperoni, cubed
- 1 cup parsley, fresh, chopped
- 8 oz provolone cheese, cubed
- 4 oz pecorino romano, grated
- 8 oz salami, hard, cubed
- 4 oz prosciutto, chopped
- 1½ cups bread crumbs
- 1 egg, large, beaten, (for egg wash)
Instructions
Pizza Crust:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the warm water, sugar, olive oil, and instant yeast.
- Add the flour and salt. Mix the dough with a wooden spoon until it forms a ball.
- Knead the dough for 1 minute or until it feels smooth and springy.
- Cover the dough in the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place for 2 hours.
Filling:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, add the 10 eggs, ricotta, parsley, and pecorino romano. Whisk the mixture until smooth.
- Add the ham, pepperoni, provolone, hard salami, prosciutto, and bread crumbs.
- Fold in the cubed meats and cheeses. The texture should be thick and slightly wet.
- Once the dough has doubled in size, place it onto a floured surface, then knead for 2 minutes, and shape it into a ball.
- Roll the dough out to a rough circle to about ¼-inch thick.
- With a pizza cutter or knife, cut out a large disc that is 2-inches wider than a 9-inch springform pan or round baking dish.
- With the rest of the dough, cut thick strips about 9-inches long and 1-inch thick.
- Transfer the dough disc into the springform pan or baking dish.
- Gently press the dough against the bottom and sides of the pan, allowing the excess to hang over the sides.
- Pour the egg, cheese, and meat mixture into the pan. Pack the filling down and smooth the top with a spatula.
- Weave the strips of dough on top to create a decorative pattern. Trim any excess dough, then fold and crimp the edges.
- Brush the top with egg wash.
- Bake the pizza rustica for 2 hours or until the filling is cooked through and the pizza dough has browned.
- Let the pizza rustica cool completely. Remove from the pan.
- Chill in the refrigerator overnight on a wire rack.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
- Calories:599.08kcal
- Fat:32.89g
- Saturated Fat:12.53g
- Trans Fat:0.31g
- Monounsaturated Fat:14.41g
- Polyunsaturated Fat:3.38g
- Carbohydrates:43.74g
- Fiber:2.13g
- Sugar:1.93g
- Protein:30.15g
- Cholesterol:202.72mg
- Sodium:1228.69mg
- Calcium:302.47mg
- Potassium:364.53mg
- Iron:4.25mg
- Vitamin A:146.62µg
- Vitamin C:5.66mg
Excited to try your hand at making this traditional Italian Easter dish? Share your experience, ask questions, or post photos of your Pizza Rustica in the Recipe Sharing forum.
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