Pizza Rustica

If you're Italian and do not eat this on Easter, SHAME ON YOU!  Easter is definitely my favorite food holiday - and pizza rustica is the main reason why.  Meat.  Cheese.  More meat and more cheese, all bundled in a sweet dough.  #drool  (Side note: The manicotti, peeps, chocolate covered marshmallows and Italian cheesecake don't hurt either!)

No doubt it's a week worth of calories, but, hey, we only it eat once a year!

Pizza Rustica
adapted from Nick Malgieri

My sous-chef.

Filling the shell.

Makes 1 12-inch pie

Sweet Dough

3 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold
3 eggs, beaten

Filling

2 pounds ricotta**
6 eggs
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 cup grated Pecorino Romano
1 pound mozzarella, coarsely grated
1/2 pound sweet dried sausage, peeled and diced
1/2 pound prosciutto, shredded
1/2 cup chopped parsley

Egg Wash

1 egg
1 pinch salt
Hawaiin sea salt, optional

**Use a good store-bought ricotta.  It should be on the "dry" side.  If it's very moist, drain the excess water using a cheese clothe.

Spray a 12" straight-edged pan with non-stick baking spray.

For the Sweet Dough, combine dry ingredients in bowl of food processor and pulse several times to mix. Dice butter and distribute evenly over dry ingredients. Pulse until very finely powdered. Add eggs and continue to pulse until dough forms a ball that revolves on blade.  Dump dough onto a clean work surface and, in as few motions as possible, give a couple of kneads to fully incorporate the dough.  Press into a disk, wrap and chill.

For the Filling, place ricotta in a mixing bowl and stir in eggs one at a time; stir in remaining filling ingredients in the order listed, mixing only long enough to make sure everything is evenly distributed.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and set a rack in the lower third. Divide the Sweet Dough into 2 pieces. Roll 1 of the pieces thinly to line a 12-inch straight-sided cake pan. Pour in filling and smooth top. Roll the remaining dough to a 12-inch square and cut into 1-inch strips.   Create a lattice work over the filling.  Press strips at rim of pan to adhere and trim away excess dough even with top of pan.  For the eggwash, mix the egg and salt.  Using a pastry brush, paint the lattice and crust.  Sprinkle with Hawaiin sea salt, if you'd like.

Bake until the filling is set and the dough is baked through, about 45 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack. To unmold, place a platter on top and invert, removing pan. Replace pan with another platter and invert again, removing top platter. Serve at room temperature or chilled. Refrigerate any leftovers.

Ready for the oven