This savoury Italian Easter tart from Liguria features eggs, a potent Easter symbol. For a quicker and easier version, you could replace the pastry with puff pastry or even filo pastry.
Ingredients
- 500 g flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil approx 300 ml water
- Spinach filling:
- 1 kg fresh spinach
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 small red onion
- 1 bunch of marjoram
- 75 g toasted pine nuts
- 1 large stale ciabatta roll
- 100 ml milk
- 75 g Parmesan cheese
- 8 eggs
- 500 g ricotta
- 6 tbsp olive oil
- 50 g butter
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
1- Sieve the flour and salt into the mixer bowl. Mix with the dough hook
on speed 1, then slowly add the olive oil and water until you obtain a smooth dough. Continue kneading on speed 2 for 3 minutes until the dough is very smooth and elastic.
2- Divide into 12 pieces, shape into balls and place on a floured tea towel. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave for 1 hour.
Prepare the filling
3- Remove the stalks from the spinach and wash thoroughly. Cook the spinach in 1 tablespoon of olive oil until just wilted. Drain thoroughly and squeeze out any excess liquid, then chop. Finely chop the onion and sauté in 1 tablespoon of olive oil.
3- Mix into the spinach with the finely chopped marjoram and the pine nuts. Cut the crusts off the bread and tear the bread into pieces. Pour over the milk and leave to soak. Grate the Parmesan cheese into a small bowl with the fine shredding drum on the rotor vegetable slicer/shredder on speed 4. Break 2 eggs into the mixer bowl and mix with the flat beater on speed
4- Stir in 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan. Squeeze out any excess moisture from the bread and mix into the eggs with the ricotta. Add the spinach on speed 4.
Baking
5- Preheat the oven to 200°C/gas mark 6. Grease a deep 20-22 cm springform tin. Roll out one of the dough balls on a lightly floured surface, stretching the dough by hand in all directions like strudel pastry.
6- Arrange in the base of the tin, so that the pastry hangs over the sides. Brush with olive oil. Repeat with the next 5 balls of pastry, brushing each layer with olive oil.
Spoon the filling into the tin, smooth the top and brush with olive oil.
6- Make 6 indentations in the filling. Place a little butter in each and crack an egg on top; take care not to break the yolks. Season, then sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top.
Roll out the remaining balls of pastry and arrange on top, brushing each layer with olive oil.
7- Place the remaining butter around the edges, then fold over the overhanging pastry. Brush with olive oil and carefully pierce two or three times, so the steam can escape. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.
