Sweet Easter Italian Spinach and Fruit Pie

[maggiethecat]

I was torn between posting this query here or in the Italy forum but decided this might be the better venue. I'm trying to reconstruct a recipe Nonna made for a dense, almost medieval pie filled with spinach, dried fruit and pignoli. Eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and some parm -- maybe ricotta too. The crust wasn't tender: the fat might have been olive oil, and I know she threw in a couple of tablespoons of Marsala. She made it once a year, at Easter, like an Italian substitute for Hot Cross Bins.

I can't find a recipe, or even the name of this wonderful pie. Can my brilliant eG pastry folks help out?

[Kerry Beal]

In Dolci Toscani - I'm finding a recipe for Torta con becchi di riso e spinaci - Spinach and Rice Cake.

It uses a dough of bread flour etc, and a filling of arborio rice, eggs, pine nuts, candied fruit, raisins (soaked in rum), spinach and some amaretto.

I'll check out a few more books and see what else I can find.

[rooftop1000]

Maybe...

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/2722795/healthy_italian_cooking_sicilian_spinach.html

[maggiethecat]

Thanks Kerry and rooftop. Thing is, Nonna's pie had no rice and rooftop's fab sounding recipe has no spinach. I don't think that this recipe is too obscure, even in Italy today, but I;m having no luck with my research. So, andioamo, guys.

[Kerry Beal]

I'm finding some others with ricotta, peel, the spices you mentioned - but no spinach. Wonder if you could cobble something together?

What area of Italy did Nonna hail from?

Edited March 26, 2010 by Kerry Beal (log)

[lesliec]

Look again, Maggie - Rooftop's recipe begins "1 ten-oz. package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained" ...

[Lisa Shock]

I have seen references in the past, I recall seeing an Italian woman as a guest on some cooking show 20+ years ago making Easter pie and the crust was essentially the same as fresh pasta, just not boiled. I remember finding that a bit perplexing. I usually make my own version with a more traditional French crust.

[maggiethecat]

Detail I forgot to add, but it might be important: this pie had a lattice top.

[maggiethecat]

I hang my head.Sorry, rooftop.

Edited March 26, 2010 by maggiethecat (log)

[Kerry Beal]

Try "Torta coi bischeri" - variations talk about replacing the chocolate with spinach in some regions.

[JeanneCake]

Check out the Easter Pastries thread newly bumped up in P&B forum; it has several photos of what you are describing....

[emilyr]

Is it something like this? Torta Pasqualina

This is the closest recipe I've found to one my Italian professor brought in college - texture- and crust-wise. But it was sweet. It had apricots and dried apples and a bit of spice like cinnamon or nutmeg along with the spinach and egg/ricotta filling. I think you could probably sub out sweet ingredients for savory in this one.

[barbie]

Hello Maggie!

I signed up to the forum just to help you out with this! I am Italian native speaker, so I thought I could search through the Italian recipes on the net for you.

Just to be sure, are you saying the main ingredients of your cake are:

spinach

pinoli

dried fruit

eggs

maybe ricotta

Most recipe I've found are without dried fruit, as it's not really a sweet cake... I've attached links to pictures and recipes, in Italian only, but you can use google translator or I can translate it for you if you need help!

Was it something like this:

(Ingredients: ricotta, spinach, nutmeg, pinoli, olive oil, filo pastry):

Recipe here: Ricotta, spinaci e pinoli 1

Or maybe something like this:

(Ingredients: ricotta, spinach, eggs, nutmeg, pinoli, garlic, parmesan, olive oil, filo pastry):

Recipe here: Ricotta spinaci e pinoli 2

Or like this, recipe and picture here: Ricotta, spinaci e pinoli 3

Either cases the cake is not sweet.

If you are looking for something sweet, I've found another recipe without spinach though. Ingredients are ricotta, eggs, dried fruit, rum, pinoli, raisins, puff pastry and savoiardi. No picture here, sorry, only the recipe: ricotta e pinoli sweet

If you would let me know which is the closest one to yours, I will improve my research

Edited April 3, 2010 by barbie (log)