Egg ricotta and spinach Easter pie

  • Serves: 8
  • Prep: 20 mins
  • Cook: 40 mins

Based on the classic Italian Torta Pasqualina, we’ve made things easy with crispy filo pastry. You can add extra seasonal veggies to the filling such as peas, broad beans or peppers too.

Ingredients

  • 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 onion, finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 600g frozen spinach, thawed
  • 375g ricotta, drained
  • 50g Parmesan, finely grated
  • 6 British Lion eggs
  • 6 sheets filo pastry
  • 50g breadcrumbs
  • 2tsp sesame or poppy seeds
  • 24 cm loose bottomed cake or tart tin, oiled

Method

  1. Heat oven to gas mark 5/190C/170C fan. Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan, add onion and cook over a medium heat for 5-6 minutes until softened. 
  2. Add the garlic and cook for a further minute, remove from the heat. 
  3. Squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the thawed spinach and roughly chop. Add to the pan and mix in the ricotta, Parmesan, two British Lion eggs and season with lots of pepper. 
  4. Lightly brush each sheet of filo with the remaining oil. Lay each sheet into the oiled tin, giving each sheet a sixth of a turn, leaving the excess pastry overhanging. 
  5. Scatter the base with breadcrumbs and spoon in the spinach filling. 
  6. Make 4 deep indents in the filling, then crack a British Lion egg into each. 
  7. Roughly fold over the excess pastry and gently dab with any remaining oil. Scatter with sesame seeds or poppy seeds. 
  8. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes until cooked through. Cool for 10 minutes, then transfer to a serving plate. 
     

Cooks tips

Work quickly when using filo so the pastry doesn’t dry out. Keep sheets covered with damp kitchen roll while they’re waiting to be boiled. 

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3.1 / 5 rating (18 votes)

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