This delicious Easter pie recipe Italian is made with ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses and Italian cured sausage in a pie crust. It’s a traditional savory pie eaten at Easter. It’s delicious and is perfect for an Easter dinner side dish or Easter Brunch and the leftovers are a filling snack.
Traditional Italian Easter Pie with Ricotta and Meat Recipe
My Italian grandmother who lived in southern Italy in a small town in the Naples area, made a traditional Italian Easter pie every before Easter. She made one similar to this but, without the ricotta cheese. It’s my Southern Italian Easter Pie with prosciutto, cured sausage, mozzarella and parmesan cheese.
She was a wonderful cook. One time I saw her making making gnocchi in her kitchen. It’s so popular in Italy and is a fantastic dish for an American Easter Sunday brunch or a traditional Italian Easter meal or “pranzo.”
This Italian Easter meat pie is easy-to-make and very DELICIOUS! It’s a popular Easter dish with Italians and Italian-Americans alike.
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Italian Easter Recipes
What is served at an Italian Easter?
Because Italians from all parts of Italy emigrated to America over the decades, there are many different version of Italian Easter pies from different regions of Italy. My family is from southern Italy near Naples.
The two Easter pies I’m most familiar with are a savory one made with eggs and meat, my version which is my most popular Easter recipe is Southern Italian Easter Pie, and a slightly sweet one made with rice.
Another sweet pie that is traditionally made at Easter in the Naples area is Pastiera Napoletana that’s made with wheat berries.
Italian-American households celebrate their very own versions.
Some use prosciutto or hard Italian sausage for the meats and ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese and/or mozzarella cheeses. Most of them use beaten eggs or hard-boiled eggs.
Pizza Chiena
As I’ve mentioned above, this Italian Easter pie is made typically only at Easter time and is really more of a quiche but, is better known as “Easter Pie” to Americans or “pizza chiena” which has evolved to “pizza gaina”for those who don’t speak Italian.
The proper name in Italian is “pizza ripiena” or “pizza piena” which translated into English is “pizza full.” The word “pizza” here is used more as in a savory pie like a chicken pot pie but, not a sweet pie.
This Italian Easter pie with ricotta and meats not only tastes great, it’s easy to make, can be made ahead and even tastes good out of the refrigerator without being reheated.
It is perfect for the buffet table hosted by a tired and busy mom. And, if you aren’t hosting, it is a great take along dish for the very same reasons!
Because it’s made with eggs, meats and cheese, it’s perfect for an American breakfast or Easter brunch. Am I right? Nonetheless, this Easter Pie is good at any meal or by itself as a filling snack to hold you over.
Easter Pie Recipe Italian
Italians in Italy make the dough for this Easter Pie but, I’m going to take the easy way out and use refrigerated pie crusts for the bottom and top layer.
This will cut down the prep time a lot. Feel free to use a homemade pastry crust if you have time.
Hard Italian Sausage or Prosciutto
If you choose to use prosciutto for this recipe instead of the hard sausage, you can’t use sliced prosciutto. You’ll need a chunk of prosciutto instead.
Go to the deli counter at a grocery store or Italian deli and ask the person to cut you a 1/4 inch thick piece of prosciutto in one chunk. You’ll need about 8 oz or so.
Then, just cut it into 1/4 inch cubes.
Ricotta Cheese
Did you know you can make fresh ricotta cheese in your Instant Pot? You need whole milk and white vinegar and you’ll have fresh ricotta in minutes!
Ingredients
- pastry dough enough for two 9″ rounds
- 15 oz ricotta cheese
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
- 7 oz hard Italian sausage or prosciutto cut into 1/4-1/2 inch cube like pieces
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 350F.
- Then, line a 8″ x 8″ baking dish or similar with one of the refrigerated pie crusts.
- Then, add the hard Italian sausage to the bottom crust.
- Next, add about half of the beaten eggs and reserve 2 tbsp of whisked eggs for egg wash.
- Next, spread the ricotta cheese over top and add salt and black pepper to taste.
- Sprinkle with grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
- Next, evenly add the shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Then, add the remaining beaten eggs.
- Add the other pie crust to the top and use a fork to decorate and press edges closed.
- Brush egg wash on top of the pie crust including the edges. This will make it bake to a beautiful brown color.
- Last, bake pie in oven on 350F for 55 min or until golden brown. Let cool 15 minutes before cutting.
It’s so simple! You can amaze your family on Easter this year by making this delicious Easter Pie with only a few basic ingredients.
Storage
Store this Italian Easter Pie in the refrigerator for a few days. It tastes good cold or at room temperature.
This quiche is a delicious side dish, breakfast or filling snack. It’s perfect for brunch!
Our family loves eating this savory pie every Easter!
Although this Italian Easter pie recipe isn’t made until Easter weekend, it isn’t eaten on Good Friday because of the observance of no meat Fridays during Lent. It’s typically eaten on Easter Saturday or Easter Sunday!
This popular Italian Ricotta Pie is a great buffet dish for Easter Sunday. It’s cheesy delicious! This is a great take along potluck dish because you can easily make it ahead. It doesn’t need to be reheated so it’s a perfect to put on a buffet and make your Easter Brunch or dinner easier to serve!
Bring this delicious savory Italian Easter Pie to Easter brunch or dinner to celebrate your Italian heritage. It’s so incredibly GOOD! Our family LOVES it and yours will too.
You may also like:
Italian Easter Bread Pane di Pasqua
See more Easter recipes.
See more Italian recipes.
Italian Eaaster Pie with Ricotta and Meat
Ingredients
- 2 pastry dough enough for two 9" rounds
- 15 oz creamy, whole milk ricotta (I use Glabani brand)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1/2 cup grated parmigiano reggiano cheese
- 7 oz hard Italian sausage (cured)
- salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 350F.
- Then, line a 8" x 8" baking dish or similar with one of the refrigerated pie crusts.
- Then, add the hard Italian sausage to the bottom crust.
- Next, reserve 2 tbsp of whisked eggs for egg wash and then add about half of the beaten eggs.
- Next, spread the ricotta cheese over top and add salt and black pepper to taste.
- Sprinkle with grated or shredded Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.
- Then, evenly sprinkle the shredded mozzarella cheese.
- Then, add the remaining beaten eggs.
- Add the other pie crust to the top and use a fork to decorate and press edges closed.
- Brush egg wash on top of the pie crust including the edges. This will make it bake to a beautiful brown color.
- Last, bake pie in oven on 350F for 55 min or until golden brown. Let cool 15 minutes before cutting.
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