Traditional Italian Easter Pie
Just a few extra notes when making this recipe.....really, a store bought crust is just as good as making your own. And we like to keep things simple when we can. And we do like to keep things natural too, so we favor Immaculate Baking Company ready made crust.
Also, it is really important to take the time to drain the basket cheese and the ricotta cheese. Otherwise the pie filling could be too soggy. And no one wants a soggy pie!
We recommend shredding the mozzarella yourself instead of buying pre-shredded, but again sometimes those time savers can help. Tip for easy shredding: place the cheese in the freezer for about 10 min. It will harden a bit making it easier to shred on a hand shredder.
And it's no exaggeration the filling will be really high! If you feel just too much to seal the top crust on, save the filling and make another one! You can even make in smaller versions with a smaller pan. Doesn't have to be a 'pie' plate. Also, you could even double the recipe and make an extra pie. They freeze really well. Freeze it after it cooks so all you have to do is just reheat it! You don't have to just eat it for Easter!!
INGREDIENTS:
2 pie crusts
8 oz Italian sausage - out of casing
4 oz chopped pepperoni
4 oz chopped salami
4 oz prosciutto - torn into small pieces
8 oz basket cheese - drained
8 oz ricotta cheese - drained
8 oz fresh mozerella - shredded
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano - grated
3 eggs - beaten
1 small sweet onion
INSTRUCTIONS
Drain cheese, break them up a bit and put them in a strainer over a bowl for one hour.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare filling.
In a pan over medium heat, brown sausage. When sausage is almost done, add chopped onion.
While the sausage is cooking, add the other ingredients to a large bowl. When the sausage is done, remove from pan with a slotted spoon and add to the other ingredients and mix well.
Place one pie crust in a nine inch pie plate, and add the filling. It will be a large mound!
Place the second pie crust on top and crimp all of the edges. Cut a few slits in the top. Beat one more egg, add a dash of water and brush the egg wash on the top crust.
Bake for about 50 minutes until the top is golden and you can hear the cheese bubbling. Let rest for about 20 minutes before serving.