Pizza Rustica alla Napoletana
Cuisine: Italian
Author: Epicurus.com Kitchens
Ingredients
Pasta Frolla:
  • 3 Cups bleached all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 Cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 12 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks)
  • 3 large eggs
Filling:
  • 2 pounds whole-milk or part-skim-milk ricotta
  • 6 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
  • 1/4 Cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
  • 1 pound mozzarella; coarsely grated
  • 1/2 pound sweet dried sausage; peeled and diced
  • 1/2 pound prosciutto; shredded
  • 1/2 Cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
Egg Wash:[
  • 1 egg; well beaten with
  • 1 pinch salt
Instructions
  1. Butter a 12-inch-diameter by 2-inch-deep cake pan, or an 11- by 17-inch jelly-roll pan.
  2. To make the dough, combine the dry ingredients in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade and pulse several times to mix. Cut the butter into 1-tablespoon pieces and distribute evenly over the dry ingredients in the work bowl. Pulse until very finely powdered. Add the eggs and continue to pulse until the dough forms a ball on the blade.
  3. To mix the dough by hand, combine the the ingredients in a mixing bowl. Add the butter and rub in finely by hand or with a pastry blender. Stir in the eggs with a fork and continue stirring until the dough holds together.
  4. Remove the dough and divide into 2 pieces, one of which is two-thirds of the dough and the other one-third. Press the larger piece into a circle and wrap in plastic. Press the smaller piece into a square and wrap it too. Refrigerate both while preparing the filling.
  5. To make the filling, place the ricotta in the work bowl of the food processor and pulse to pur??e smoothly. Transfer the ricotta to a mixing bowl and stir in the eggs, one at a time; stir in the remaining filling ingredients in the order listed.
  6. Set a rack at the lower third of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
  7. Lightly flour a work surface and the larger piece of dough and roll the dough out into a 17-inch circle. Fold the dough into quarters and place in the prepared pan. Unfold the dough and press into the pan, allowing any excess dough to hang over the sides. Pour in the filling (it will come to about 3/4-inch below the top of the pan) and smooth the top.
  8. Roll the remaining dough into a 10-inch square and cut into 1-inch strips. Paint the dough strips with the egg wash. Arrange 5 strips over the filling. Arrange the remaining strips at a 45-degree angle across the first ones. Press the strips against the rim of the pan to make them stick and trim away excess dough -- only from the strips -- around the top of the pan. Use a small knife to loosen the bottom crust dough around the rim of the pan and fold it over to form an edge for the top crust.
  9. Bake the pizza for about 45 minutes, until the filling is set and the dough is baked through. Cool in the pan on a rack.
  10. To unmold, place a platter over the pizza and invert it, then remove the pan. Replace the pan with another platter and invert the pizza again. Remove the top platter.
  11. Serving: Serve in wedges as an appetizer, or as part of a buffet. Pizza rustica is a perfect brunch dish.
  12. Storage: Keep the pizza rustica at room temperature on the day it is baked. For longer storage, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for up to several days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
  13. Hint For Success: Don't overbake the pizza rustica or the filling will become watery and soak through the bottom crust.
Notes
This recipe yields 1 large pie, about 20 servings.

Comments: In Italy, this typical savory pie is served at Carnevale (the day before Ash Wednesday) and then again at Easter. Though many recipes for pizza rustica specify that the dried sausage, mozzarella and other filling ingredients be layered, in this Neapolitan version they are diced and added to the ricotta filling, which makes the pizza easier to cut into wedges. The dough used here is a pasta frolla, a sweet, tender, and typical Italian pastry dough. The combination of a sweet dough and a savory filling may seem bizarre, but it yields a good contrast -- the sweetness of the dough tempers the rather salty filling. If the combination does not appeal to you, leave out the sugar; add a tablespoon or two of water to make the dough form a ball.

Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 74 Calories; 3g Fat (38.6% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 5g Carbohydrate; 0g Dietary Fiber; 101mg Cholesterol; 471mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Lean Meat; 0 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

NOTES : Recipe from "How To Bake" by Nick Malgieri
Recipe by Epicurus.com Recipes at https://www.epicurus.com/food/recipes/pizza-rustica-alla-napoletana/8486/