Torta Pasqualina: Savory Italian Easter Pie Recipe

Make this Torta Pasqualina recipe and it will steal the show at your Easter Sunday meal. Of course, it doesn’t have to be served only on Easter, but it is a traditional Italian Easter dish.

My Italian family, like most Italian families, was big on Easter pies, both savory and sweet. We’d be eating pies from appetizers through dessert.

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What is Torta Pasqualina? It is a delicious spinach and ricotta pie in a flaky puff pastry crust.

Slice of Torta Pasqualina — A slice of Torta Pasqualina reveals a sliced egg on both sides.

What I love about this pie is the fun surprise you get when you cut the perfect slice of the finished pie. As a bonus, seeing the whole eggs sit on top of a spinach ricotta mixture while you’re making the pie has its own quite festive effect just for you.

The wonderful flavors and delicious egg surprise are what makes this pie an ideal Easter recipe!

Equipment for Torta Pasqualina

Two modern inventions make preparing and serving this dish quite easy:

food processor
9 inch springform pan

No doubt the original Torta Pasqualina was not made with a food processor or a springform pan. So, if you prefer to chop away, mix in a large bowl, and use a pie pan instead, no one can criticize you.

Ingredients for Torta Pasqualina

The original recipe for Torta Pasqualina traces back to a time of poverty in 14th-century Liguria in northern Italy. The recipe is therefore very flexible, as people used the ingredients that were available to them, especially when it came to the veggies.

Filling ingredients were most often seasonal leafy greens like spinach, Swiss chard leaves, and kale. The mix could also include other veggies like artichokes or mushrooms and/or fresh herbs. I prefer a filling of spinach and artichoke. But if you want to make substitutions, don’t hesitate!

Spinach 

If the spinach filling is too wet, you’ll have a soggy crust. So, for this Ligurian Easter pie, frozen spinach works better than fresh spinach. Fresh spinach contains so much water that I find it better to squeeze out the excess water from defrosted frozen spinach. I literally take a handful at a time and squeeze.

Artichokes

I use unmarinated canned whole artichoke hearts. I squeeze the water out of them by hand just like I do with the spinach. Marinated artichokes will work fine too, as long as you squeeze the liquid out. The flavor will just be slightly different and you’ll have a little added oil.

Ricotta Cheese

Creamy ricotta cheese is one of the most popular Italian cheeses for Easter. It features prominently in savory dishes as well as Italian Easter desserts. And while I love whole-milk ricotta best, for La Torta Pasqualina, I use part-skim ricotta. It has the perfect consistency so that the filling isn’t too runny. 

Parmesan cheese

Parmigiano reggiano, the pride of the Emilia Romagna region, is the ultimate in parmesan cheese. If you can find it in your area, it will lend a depth of flavor that far exceeds what’s found in the shaker with a green lid.

Eggs

I think the pie slices look best with a more orange-colored egg yolk rather than the usual ones that tend to be yellow. And although it may look like the pie has hard-boiled eggs in it, the eggs will taste better if you use raw eggs in the preparation rather than hard-boiled ones. 

Puff Pastry 

I use three sheets of Pepperidge Farm puff pastry sheets. On a lightly floured surface, use a rolling pin to even out the shape. It just takes a couple of rolls.

If you prefer to use a pie crust, just follow the same instructions for the puff pastry crust. I’ve even turned this pie into a Greek dish by using phyllo dough and feta.

Olive Oil 

As always, when I’m using olive oil, extra virgin olive oil is my choice. Even if it’s just to brush on the puff pastry. An egg wash will serve the same purpose of creating a golden brown, slightly crispy crust. But this is Italian cuisine, so EVOO has my vote.

Torta Pasqualina Recipe

Italian Easter pie with spinach and ricotta — Torta Pasqualina is an Italian spinach and ricotta Easter pie.

Ingredients

5 garlic cloves 
1 14-oz can whole artichoke hearts
2 pounds frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained well
1½ cup part-skim ricotta cheese 
1¼ cup grated parmigiano reggiano cheese 
10 large eggs (4 in one batch, 6 in the other) 
¼ teaspoon nutmeg 
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon salt
3 sheets of puff pastry, defrosted
2 T extra virgin olive oil 

Instructions For Filling

1. In a food processor, add the garlic cloves and mince.

2. Next, add the artichokes and pulse until the artichokes are finely chopped. Do not puree!

3. Add the ricotta cheese, parmesan, 4 of the eggs, nutmeg, black pepper, and salt. Pulse until well combined.

The mixture up through step 3 — The artichoke mixture should be little chunky, not a puree.

4. Add the spinach, and pulse until mixture is well combined. You may have to stir a couple of times in between with a wooden spoon.

5. Set the spinach-ricotta mixture aside while you work on the crust.

Instructions to Assemble the Pie

1. Preheat oven to 400°. Grease the springform pan with olive oil or olive oil non-stick spray.

2. For the top of the pie, take one sheet of puff pastry and put the springform pan on top of it. Trace around the bottom with a knife to cut a large circle. Set the large circle and the leftover dough aside.

3. Take the second sheet of pastry and hang a small amount over one side of the pan and press the remainder of the dough into about half the pan.

Pressing the puff pastry into the pan — Cut off the point of the dough roughly in the middle of the pan.

4. Take the third sheet of pastry and line it up next to the second sheet, starting at the bottom of the pan. Seal the seems with your fingers. Stretch the dough as needed to cover the remainder of the pan and let the excess dough hang over the edge.

5. Use small pieces from the first sheet’s leftover dough to repair any small holes, open seams, or thin areas. The dough is very forgiving, so don’t worry how it looks.

Springform pan lined with puff pastry — Don’t be afraid of a patchwork dough; it will still be beautiful when finished.

6. Pour the spinach mixture into your dough. Use a spatula to even it out.

7. Make 6 deep wells for the eggs. I start where the spring is in the springform pan so that I can keep track of where the eggs are and where to make my first slice after the pie is ready.

You can use the back of a spoon or gently press a raw, shelled egg into the mixture to make your indentation. Either way, test that the well is deep enough with an egg. This is a critical step. The well must be deep enough to hold the entire egg, otherwise you will not achieve the full effect of seeing a whole egg in the perfect slice.

Making sure the wells are deep enough with a egg in the mixture — This well is NOT deep enough and needs adjustment.

8. Once the wells are finished, gently crack the eggs into them and sprinkle each with a pinch of salt.

Eggs cracked into the mixture — Torta Pasqualina ready for the top layer of dough.

9. Take the large dough circle from Step 2 and place it on top of the pie.

10. Cut off the excess dough that is hanging over the sides of the pan, and roll the edges down to seal the dough.

11. Pour your olive oil in a small bowl. Using a basting brush, brush the top of the puff pastry.

12. Using the tip of a sharp knife, make an outer ring of small cuts which will act as steam vents, and then an inner-ring. Each small cut should be about an eighth of an inch in length.

Small cuts in the top of Torta Pasqualina — Torta Pasqualina ready for the oven

13. Bake on middle rack for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown.

14. Take your pie out of the oven, and wait at least 30 minutes before removing it from the springform pan. Note where the spring is when you release it so that you know where to make your fist cut.

Torta Pasqualina out of the oven — Golden brown spinach and ricotta Easter pie waiting to set

Serving Torta Pasqualina

Italian Easter Pie with slice removed — If you serve 6 large pieces, each slice will display half an egg on each side.

How To Serve Easter Pie

Traditionally, Torta Pasqualina is not served with a sauce. But if you’re one of those people who think marinara or bolognese sauce needs to be on all Italian food, feel free.

However, I think if I was going to sauce it, I’d use my Genovese pesto sauce. It also has its origins in Liguria.

A perfect slice of Torta Pasqualina Easter Pie — Torta Pasqualina is perfect without any sauce or condiments.

When To Serve Torta Pasqualina

This traditional Italian Easter pie will often be served at Easter brunch. My family often had Easter brunch turn into Easter dinner as it was typically an 8-hour meal—no exaggeration! Sometimes it even lasted until Easter Monday!

The pie can be part of the appetizers or the main meal.

Personally, I think this savory spinach pie is not just for Easter time. I make Torta Pasqualina throughout the year and have served it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.