Italian Easter Rice Pie Recipes

EASTER PIE

Steps:

• Blend 3/4 cup of powdered sugar, eggs, vanilla, orange zest and ricotta in a food processor until smooth. Stir in the rice and pine nuts. Set the ricotta mixture aside.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Lightly butter a 9-inch glass pie dish. Lay 1 phyllo sheet over the bottom and up the sides of the dish, allowing the phyllo to hang over the sides. Brush the phyllo with the melted butter. Top with a second sheet of phyllo dough, laying it in the opposite direction as the first phyllo sheet. Continue layering the remaining sheets of phyllo sheets, alternating after each layer and buttering each sheet. Spoon the ricotta mixture into the dish. Fold the overhanging phyllo dough over the top of the filling to enclose it completely. Brush completely with melted butter.
• Bake the pie until the phyllo is golden brown and the filling is set, about 35 minutes. Transfer the pan to a rack and cool completely. Sift powdered sugar over the pie and serve.

ITALIAN RICE PIE I

Steps:

• Beat eggs in very large bowl. Add sugar, mixing well. Stir in cheese and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Add heavy cream and stir. Fold in cooked rice and crushed pineapple.
• Pour into a 9 x 13 inch buttered pan.
• Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for one hour. Check by inserting clean knife into center. If the pie is done, knife will come out clean. Top should be golden brown. Refrigerate until thoroughly cooled.

ITALIAN EASTER PIE

Steps:

• For the dough: In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs and water; set aside. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour and salt and pulse a couple of times. Add the chilled butter and pulse about 10 times until pea-size pieces remain. Add the egg mixture and pulse 15 to 20 times until a dough ball forms. Place the dough ball on a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 1 minute. Divide into 2 balls, wrap each ball with plastic wrap and rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
• For the filling: While the dough is resting, whisk together the ricotta cheese, salt, some pepper and 6 of the eggs in a medium bowl and set aside. In a 10-inch skillet over medium heat, add the oil and brown the sausage, breaking up the pieces while it's cooking, 5 to 8 minutes. Drain the sausage on a paper towel-lined plate, leaving behind any fat. Add the asparagus and cook until beginning to soften, 4 to 5 minutes. Set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch cake pan with butter.
• On a well-floured counter, roll out each dough ball into a thin 14-inch circle. Cover one circle with plastic wrap until ready to use. Loosely roll the other dough circle around a rolling pin and unroll over the prepared cake pan, letting the excess hang over the side. Press the dough gently into the sides of the pan so there is no gap between the pan and the dough. Shingle the salami over the bottom of the dough, creating an even layer. Then, add the asparagus in an even layer on top of the salami. Next, add half of the egg mixture and spread it out evenly, then top with the capicola in an even layer. Layer in the sausage and top with the remaining egg mixture, then finally the provolone cheese.
• Whisk the remaining egg with 1 tablespoon water and brush the outside rim of the dough with the egg wash. Add the remaining dough circle to the top of the pie and cut off the excess dough. Press both circles together to create a seal. Brush the remaining egg wash over the entire top and slice a couple slits in the top of the pie. Bake until golden brown, 45 to 55 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

ITALIAN RICE PIE

Steps:

• Beat eggs in very large bowl.
• Add sugar and mix well.
• Stir in cheese and vanilla until smooth and creamy.
• Add heavy cream and stir.
• Fold in cooled, cooked rice and then drained pineapple.
• Pour into a buttered 9-1/2 inch X 13-1/2 inch pain.
• Bake@325* oven for 1 hour.
• Check after 1 hour by inserting clean knife into center. Knife should come out clean and top should be golden brown.
• Refrigerate after throughly cooled.

ITALIAN RICE PIE (PASTIERA DI RISO)

Steps:

• Make pastry dough:
• Pulse flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Add eggs and pulse until just incorporated and dough begins to form large clumps.
• Turn out dough onto a work surface and divide into 6 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together, using a pastry scraper if you have one, and form into a thick log. Cut off 2/3 of the log and form into a large rectangle for the bottom of the pie. Form the remaining piece into a smaller rectangle for the top of the pie. Chill each, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 30 minutes.
• Make filling:
• Bring rice and well-salted water to a boil in a 2-quart saucepan, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, until rice is tender, about 20 minutes. Drain in a sieve and rinse under cold water until cool. Drain well.
• Whisk together 3 yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl, then whisk in cornstarch and flour until smooth (mixture will be very thick). Bring milk just to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, then gradually add hot milk to yolk mixture, whisking.
• Pour custard back into saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-low heat, whisking constantly (custard will become very thick), then boil, whisking, 1 minute. Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla. Transfer to a bowl and chill, its surface covered with wax paper, until cold, about 2 hours.
• Stir together ricotta, custard, and remaining 2 yolks, then stir in zests, cinnamon, salt, and cooked rice.
• Assemble and bake pie:
• Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter a 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan and line the bottom with an overlapping double layer of foil, leaving 2 inches of overhang on both ends, then generously butter foil.
• Roll out 1 piece of dough between 2 sheets of wax paper into a 15- by 11-inch rectangle (about 1/8 inch thick). If dough becomes soft, chill or freeze until firm. Remove top sheet of wax paper and invert into baking pan, fitting it into pan. Chill shell. Roll out remaining piece of dough between sheets of wax paper in same manner. Cut 12 (3/4-inch-wide) crosswise strips (you will have a little dough left over).
• Spread filling in pan and arrange 6 strips, 1 1/4 inches apart, diagonally across filling, trimming ends to fit. Arrange remaining 6 strips, 1 1/4 inches apart, diagonally across first strips to form a lattice with diamond-shaped spaces. Trim lattice to fit in pan, then fold outside crust down over filling to make a border. Brush pastry with beaten egg.
• Bake pie until pastry is golden and filling is puffed and set, about 1 1/2 hours, loosely covering top of pie with foil after 50 minutes to prevent over-browning. Transfer to a rack to cool. When completely cool, lift pie out of pan using foil overhang and transfer to a platter.

ITALIAN RICE PIE II

Steps:

• Stir the flour and baking powder together in a bowl; set aside. In a second large bowl, cream the butter and 1/2 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in 3 eggs, one at a time, and stir in the vanilla. Gradually beat in the flour mixture to make a soft dough. Divide the dough in half and shape into two balls. Working on a lightly floured surface, roll out each ball to fit two 10 inch pie plates. Line the pie plates with the crust, and refrigerate until needed.
• Bring the water to a boil in a saucepan, and stir in the rice. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for 20 minutes. Stir in the milk. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens. Set aside to cool.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Meanwhile, beat the ricotta cheese, 1 1/2 cups sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, and 6 eggs together in a mixing bowl until smooth and frothy. Stir in the cooled rice mixture until evenly blended. Pour into the pie shells.
• Bake pies in preheated oven until the filling is set and tops are golden brown, about 90 minutes. Cool on racks.

ITALIAN EASTER RICE PIE

Steps:

• Preheat Oven to 350 degrees and line 2 9" Pie Pans with the crusts, refrigerate and reserve.
• In a large mixing bowl, mix the next 6 ingredients with a large spoon until thoroughly combined (no electric mixers here, it'll ruin the rice).
• Divide filling between 4 prepared pie crusts, sprinkle with cinnamon.
• Bake about 45 minutes or until filling is set in the middle (no longer giggling).
• Allow to cool completely before serving, this actually tastes best when refrigerated overnight.

PASTIERA DI RISO (ITALIAN EASTER RICE PIE)

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix flour, sugar, and baking powder.
• Add eggs, egg yolks and butter. Mix on medium speed until large, moist crumbs start to form (about 2-3 minutes).
• Remove dough from the bowl and with your hands on a smooth surface, gently form the dough into a ball.
• Wrap the dough in saran wrap and place in the fridge for approximately 1 hour.
• Add the rice and water to a pot, and over medium heat, let them come to a boil.
• Once rice and water have started to boil, cook for 8 minutes, stirring often.
• At this point, add the milk, sugar, orange peel and cinnamon sticks.
• Still on medium heat, cook the rice mixture for 30 minutes, stirring often so that the rice doesn't stick to the pot, until the rice is cooked and most of the liquid has absorbed. If rice is cooking too quickly, turn the heat down slightly.
• At this point, remove the orange peel and cinnamon sticks.
• Turn heat down to low, add butter to the rice, and cook for 7-10 minutes until all the liquid has absorbed and the mixture is dense in consistency.
• Add the rice to a shallow square dish, level it out, and cover with saran wrap. Let it cool.
• If your ricotta is very moist and has a lot of liquid in it, drain it with a colander.
• In a big bowl, add ricotta, beaten eggs, fior d'arancio, and cinnamon. Mix with a wooden spoon or whisk until all ingredients are combined.
• Once the rice mixture has cooled completely, add it to the ricotta mixture, slowly, a few spoons at a time. Mix with a wooden spoon until the rice is fully incorporated into the mixture. Set the filling aside.
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease your pie dish with butter, and then coat with a thin layer of flour.
• On a floured surface, roll out the dough a few times to soften it. Then roll it out until it's about 1/2 cm thick.
• Transfer the dough to the pie dish, and cut off any hanging edges. Fill with the filling.
• Decorate the top of the pastiera with a lattice design. The lattices should sit gently on top of the dough.
• Bake the pastiera for approximately 60 minutes, or until edges are golden. Let the pastiera cool and come to room temperature, top with powdered sugar if desired, and enjoy!