Ingredients: |
Ingredients: Pastry
3 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 egg yolk
1 cup butter, cut into pieces
3 tablespoons (approx.) cold water
Filling
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 large onions, finely chopped
I cup (8 oz.) ricotta cheese
salt and fresh gr. black pepper
4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 egg white
1 1/2 c. freshly grated parmesan cheese
3 one-inch-thick smoked pork chops (about I lb.), the fat and bones removed and the meat diced
1 ½ to 2 lbs. fresh spinach leaves, or 2 (10-ounce) packages chopped, frozen spinach
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Directions: |
Directions:1. To make the pastry, place the flour, salt and butter in a bowl. With a pastry blender, two knives or the finger tips, work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse oatmeal.
2. Mix the egg yolk with three tablespoons water and sprinkle over the mixture. Stir with a fork, adding only enough extra water to make a dough that just clings together.
3. Wrap the dough in wax paper and chill briefly.
4. Meanwhile, to prepare the filling, heat the oil and saute the onion until tender but not browned. Place the washed spinach leaves, with large stems removed and just the water that clings, into a large saucepan. Cover tightly and cook until leaves wilt. Drain well and chop the spinach.
5. If frozen spinach is used according to package directions; drain well.
6. Combine drained spinach and onion and let cool.
7. Add the diced smoked pork, Parmesan cheese, ricotta, salt and pepper to taste and eggs to the cooked spinach mixture.
8. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
9. Roll out half the pastry and line a 10-inch pie plate.
10. Brush the bottom and sides of the pie shell with the lightly beaten egg white. Pour in the filling.
11. Roll out remaining pastry and cover the filling. Seal and decorate the edges, make a steam hole and place leaves, cut from extra pastry, around the hole but not over it.
12. Bake 40 minutes, or until the pastry is golden and done. Let stand 10 to 15 minutes before cutting.
Yield: Eight servings.
Note: The pie can be made early in the day and reheated in a 375 degree oven for about 40 minutes, or until warmed through. Cover loosely with foil to prevent overbrowning. The pie can be frozen after it has cooled, and, wrapped well in aluminum foil, stored for up to two months. Allow the pie to thaw at room temperature three hours and then let it finish thawing while it is reheated in a 375 degree oven for about one hour. |
This recipe for Easter Pie: Anita Sheldon's Torta di Spinaci is from