Pizza Rustica is a typical Italian Easter dish. It’s also a great way to clean out the fridge the rest of the year if you happen to have some salami, ham, or other Italian meats hanging around. This is my easy version of the classic since it uses pre-made puff pastry and/or crescent dough instead of homemade pie crust. The prep work is minimal but you will need at least an hour to bake. What to do in that hour? How about pouring yourself a glass of wine and grabbing a good book to read? I’d recommend Beringer Knights Valley cabernet and Lost in Little Havana so you can get started on the South Beach Security Series! You can find out more about the series at https://amzn.to/36KrDcR. P.S. – Pizza Rustica is more like a quiche than a calzone or cheesecake.
Ingredients
5 large eggs
2 cups ricotta cheese
2 ounces mozzarella cheese
2 ounces asiago, fontina, or any other Italian cheese
2/3 cup parmesan cheese
6-12 slices salami and/or soppressata, chopped
4-6 slices prosciutto or ham, chopped
Directions
Preheat oven to 375.
Grease a regular 9″ pie plate. Spread the crescent dough/puff pastry into the pan, making sure to cover the sides. Use any extra dough to make a lattice on the top of the pie after you put in the egg mixture.
Beat the five eggs. Add all the other ingredients and mix. Pour into the pie plate. Decorate with extra dough.
Bake for an hour or so. Pizza Rustica will be done when the knife inserted into the center comes out cleanly. If the pastry dough is getting too dark, cover it with foil.
Once it’s baked, remove it from the oven and let cool for about five minutes (if you can wait! LOL!)
This recipe will serve 4. You can also chill and eat it cold or at room temperature.
To mix this up, cook some spinach and squeeze out any water and mix in with the eggs. Some people will also make this with cooked sausage instead of charcuterie.
Buon Appetito!
