Pizza Rustica: the easy recipe for a rich, tasty Italian Easter pie

The pizza rustica is an easy, traditional Neapolitan recipe for making Italian Easter pie. Similar to meat-filled quiche, you can enjoy it as tasty appetizer. It is a casket of flaky, buttery shortcrust pastry which contains a savory yet lightly spicy stuffing with ricotta, salami, eggs and a cheese mix, a contrast of flavors that makes this pie inimitable.

Also known as pizza chiena or pizza ripiena, this Italian Easter pie is usually made on Good Friday and served at Easter as an aperitif for a special buffet or a picnic.

In Naples, the pastry is traditionally made with lard, but we have replaced it with butter. Anyway, if you want a more authentic taste you can stick to the traditional recipe. You can serve pizza rustica warm or cold, and it is ideal to make in advance; the rest, in fact, will further intensify the flavor and fragrance.

So let’s find out how to make the Italian Easter pie by following our recipe and tips step by step.

Tips for making Easy Pizza Rustica

You can stuff Italian Easter pie with provolone cheese, caciocavallo cheese, and scamorza cheese.

You can add other cured meat such as ham or even mortadella. Don't overboard with the filling options.

We suggest you use sheep milk ricotta, for a more decisive and characteristic taste, but you can also replace it with cow milk ricotta cheese which is more delicate.

For a melting texture, add about 40 grams of cornstarch to the stuffing.

It's best to use less salt as the cured meat is very savory.

For a vegetarian variant of pizza rustica, you can leave out the cured meats and add some boiled spinach or sautéed zucchini.

Serve this Neapolitan pizza rustica with a fresh salad.

How to store Easter Pizza Rustica

You can store the pizza rustica in the refrigerator for 3-4 days, covered on the surface with a sheet of cling film.

You can also freeze it for about 2 months.

How to make Pizza Rustica

Make the shortcrust pastry. Cut the butter into cubes.

Collect the all purpose flour in a bowl and add the butter.

Add the eggs.

Add the sugar and then the salt.

Knead until you have a smooth and homogeneous dough.

Roll out the dough into a rectangle about 1 centimeter thick, wrap it in parchment paper and let it cool in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

After this time, take the dough back and divide it in two; one part must be larger than the other.

Roll out the largest part into a sheet about 5 millimeters thick.

Cut the salami into cubes.

Do the same with the cheeses.

Collect everything in a bowl and add the sheep or cow milk ricotta cheese.

Pour in the beaten eggs.

Add the grated parmesan cheese.

Season with ground pepper.

Mix carefully until homogeneous.

Cover a 26 centimeters diameter round springform pan with the shortcrust pastry. Pour the stuffing inside and level it carefully.

Roll out the remaining shortcrust pastry and use it to close the pizza rustica Easter pie.

Form a side crown, pinching the dough with your fingers to seal the edges well. Prick the surface with a knife.

Brush the Italian Easter pie surface with some egg, beaten with a drop of milk, and bake in a static oven at 340°F/170°C for about 50 minutes.

Remove the pizza rustica from the oven and let it cool, then cut into slices and serve.