Scrumptious Tradition - Italian Easter Pie

Finding its origins in Liguria, Northern Italy, the Torta Pasqualina dates back to 14th century, during a time of poverty when much of the food was sourced from locally grown crops. As the Ligurian countryside could only yield a small amount of wheat, larger amounts of flour could only be obtained from outside the region, and this proved to be very expensive. Therefore, to keep costs to a minimum, the Ligurians regularly used the small quantity of wheat they did have to produce just one pound of flour, enough to make a thin dough torta. As meat was also costly, the filling for any traditional torta would usually consist of seasonal vegetables such as mushrooms, spinach, leek, fennel, artichokes or chards.
Sources suggest that Northern Italy has been heavily influenced by cultures from both Southern Italy and Southern France. For 700 years, The Moors, travellers and conquerors native to North Africa, flourished in Al-Anduras (now known as the Iberian Penninsula), an area comprising parts of Spain, Portugal, Southern France and Southern Italy. Their presence within these regions lead to changes in local cuisine, as foods from their North African diet were gradually introduced. Wheat, olive oil, parsley, cabbage, spinach and chard were soon to become significant ingredients of many Mediterranean dishes.

Another example of this revolution in culinary fashion is the original ancestor of all savoury pies, the Sambusac. Brought to Spain from the Middle East during the Muslim conquest, this pastry was to evolve over time as its recipe travelled throughout Europe. Today, there is no doubt that many European savoury pastries owe their existence to the Sambusac, and the Torta Pasqualina is certainly one of them.

Served exclusively in the spring and traditionally alfresco on Easter Monday, the Torta Pasqualina acquired its name from the Italian word for Easter, 'Pasqua'. Prior to cooking, 13 eggs were placed on top of the filling mixture inside the pastry case, 12 around the edge and the yolk of the thirteenth in the middle; representing Christ and his 12 apostles. Traditionally, the torta used 33 layers of puff pastry, one for each year of Christ's life. Today, it is most commonly made with a filling of spinach and ricotta, but using fewer eggs and pastry layers.

See our recipes for both an easier modern version and an old school traditional recipe like my nonna made.