Delicious Italian pizza rustica

Looking for a show-stopping dish to serve at your next celebration? Look no further than this mouth-watering Italian pizza rustica recipe!

This delicious dish is sure to captivate your senses with its savoury aroma of crispy bacon, tender spinach, and creamy ricotta cheese, all nestled in a golden, flaky pastry crust.

The combination of flavours and textures is simply divine, making it a perfect option for a celebratory brunch or dinner. Whether you’re an experienced cook or just starting out, this recipe is easy to follow and guaranteed to impress.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

PASTRY

• 250g plain flour (I’d recommend Italian 00)
• 125g cold unsalted butter, cut into 1cm cubes
• 2 egg yolks
• 2 tbsp iced water
• 1 heaped tsp salt
• 1 tbsp caster sugar

FILLING

• 50g pure pork sausage, skinned
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 250g ricotta cheese
• 50g smoked provolone, diced
• 125g mozzarella, crumbled
• 50g Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/2 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 tbsp flatleaf parsley, chopped
• 2 pinches chilli powder (or dried chilli flakes)
• 100g prosciutto, cut into small pieces
• 100g mortadella, cut into small pieces
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• Black pepper
• 1 tbsp dried breadcrumbs (heaped tablespoon)

GLAZE

• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 pinch of salt

Method

1. Put flour and butter in a dish, and put in the freezer for 10 minutes. Stir together yolks, water and salt in a cup, and put in the fridge. Then, when time’s up, tip flour and butter into the bowl of the processor, add sugar and pulse to combine: you want a soft crumbly mass, somewhere between sand and porridge oats.
2. Bind with egg yolks mixture, and when it looks like it’s on the verge of coming together (you have to stop slightly short of this actually happening), tip the pastry out and work it together with your hands.
3. Divide into two discs, one somewhat larger than the other, wrap both in cling wrap and put both in the fridge to rest.
4. Preheat oven to 200C or 180C fan-forced, and put in a baking sheet.
5. Fry sausage in oil for about 5 minutes, breaking it up with a wooden spoon as it cooks. Transfer it to a bowl and allow it to cool. Add all the other ingredients except breadcrumbs and mix thoroughly.
6. Roll out the larger disc of pastry to cover the bottom and sides of a 22cm springform tin, leaving an overhang of a few centimetres. Sprinkle the bottom of the pastry-lined tin with breadcrumbs, and then fill with the hammy, eggy mixture.
7. Roll out the smaller disc to make the lid, place it on top of the filled pie, turn over the edges of the overhang to form a border and press down with the tines of a fork.
8. Combine yolk, milk and salt and glaze the pie with the mixture using a brush. Stab it here and there with the prongs of a fork to make steam holes, and place it on the baking sheet in the preheated oven. Give it 10 minutes, then turn it down to 180C or 160C fan-forced and bake for a further 45 minutes.
9. Leave pie to cool for at least 10-15 minutes before serving.