AUNTIE PASTA: Easter Pie alla Genovese

CHIAVARI, Italy –  In Italy, torta Pasqualina is to Easter what turkey stuffing is to Thanksgiving in the U.S.A. It just wouldn’t be the same without it.  This savory torta, which is very similar to the far more popular French dish – quiche, originated in Genova during the 1600’s.

 Torta Pasqualina

It is a dish that in the past was served exclusively in the spring – at Easter to be more precise - which is how it got it’s name – Pasqua, which means Easter in Italian. And it is also why the traditional Pasqualina recipe called for 33 layers of puff pastry, one for each year of Christ’s life.

One of the differences between quiche and torta Pasqualina is that the ingredients of our torta are not mixed together and cooked in an egg and milk custard as they are in a quiche, but layered, starting with Swiss chard. Next comes a layer of prescineua, a fresh, light cheese that is similar to cream cheese. Prescineau, which I’m still trying to figure out how to pronounce, is a Ligurian specialty cheese and not found outside of the region so ricotta is often used as a substitute.

 Layers of Deliciousness

As for the 33 layers of pastry, no one really does that any more. One more modern recipes I found  called for 10 layers of pastry, five on the bottom and five on the top, but most of the recipes seemed to make do with four, even when using frozen grocery store puff pastry. The recipe below calls for two layers of puff pastry, one for the bottom and one for the top, but if you choose to go the traditional route and use more than one, be sure to brush a little olive oil between each layer so they stay flakey and don’t stick together.

But the most distinctive difference between torta pasqualina and quiche is the addition of whole raw egg yolks to top the final layer. In the traditional torta recipe, the one with 33 layers of pastry, it calls for 13 yolks to be placed on the top of the torta, twelve yolks around the edges and one yolk in the center, representing Christ and His 12 apostles. 

 The Final Touch

But whether you use 13 or 4 as called for in the recipe below, the raw yolks are placed in a hollow made in the cheese layer with the back of a tablespoon. The whites are then lightly beaten and a few spoonfuls of the frothy whites are spooned over the top before adding the final layer of pastry.

Torta Pasqualina

Serves 6-8 (as an appetizer)

500 grams of frozen puff pastry

1 kg of Swiss chard

½ medium onion finely chopped
500 gr. of whole milk ricotta
250 gr. light cream

8 eggs

50 gr. butter
125 gr. grated Parmesan cheese   

1 tablespoon of chopped, fresh marjoram

Salt and pepper

Thaw the puff pastry at room temperature (about 2 hours)

Sauté the chopped onion in a little butter and olive oil until it is translucent. Blanche the Swiss chard in boiling water for 3 or 4 minutes, drain, squeeze dry, rough chop and add to the sautéed onions and cook together to blend the flavors. Then add a pinch of salt, pepper and the marjoram to the Swiss chard and onions, mix and set aside to cool.

In the meantime, as the Swiss chard is cooling, combine the ricotta with the Parmesan cheese, light cream and 2 lightly beaten eggs. Set aside.

Roll out one portion of puff pastry and place it in the lightly greased baking pan, with a couple of inches of overlap, which will be used to seal the top.  When the Swiss chard is room temperature, mix in 2 lightly beaten whole eggs and sprinkle with a few spoons of grated parmesan cheese and spread the mixture on the bottom of the baking pan.

Top the Swiss chard with an even layer of ricotta. With the back of a tablespoon, make 4 evenly spaced indentation on the top of the cheese layer. Separate the first raw egg and place the yolk in the indentation. Fill the remaining indentations the same way, using the last 3 eggs.

Lightly beat the egg whites and carefully spoon some of the frothy egg white mixture over the cheese and egg yolk layer.  Cover with the remaining sheet (or sheets) of puff pastry and carefully seal the edges. Brush the top with a bit of milk, and prick with a fork or a small sharp knife, to allow the steam to escape.

Bake in a pre-heated oven – 186 degrees C (360 degrees F) for 40 minutes, or until golden brown. If the instructions on the package of frozen puff pastry call for a higher temperature, I would suggest following those directions, just check the torta often to make sure it cooking and browning and not burning.

Serve warm or room temperature. 

 Perfect for a Picnic

 Afterthoughts.

If you are not familiar with Swiss chard, it’s a dark green leafy vegetable that looks a lot like spinach, but tastes a little sweeter. In other parts of the world Swiss chard stems come in different colors, but here in Italy they are always white. Like spinach, Swiss chard needs to be carefully washed and the stems trimmed.   

There is nothing that says you can’t mix the Swiss chard and ricotta together and eliminate the layers, and in fact many recipes call for you to do just that. You might be tempted to eliminate the egg yolks on the top layer as well, but I wouldn’t recommend it. They really do add an extra dimension to the dish.

About puff pastry. Here in Italy puff pastry is sold two to a package, so I usually buy two packages for this recipe because I prefer four thin layers of dough.  It’s not a bad idea to lightly grease your baking pan with olive oil, or line it with parchment paper, and if you use a spring form baking pan it will be easier to remove the torta for serving.

Torta pasqualina can be served warm or cold and it’s a ‘must’ for the Easter table as it is perfect to take along for the traditional Pasquetta  ‘picnic fuori casa’,  picnic in the country – or at least out in the open - on Easter Monday, which is also a national holiday here in Italy. Happy Easter.

AUNTIE PASTA: Lasagna alla Genovese

SARONNO, Italy - Last Saturday was a perfect day for the Riviera so Gary, Chris and I took an early morning train out of Milan and headed west. Fortunately we had reserved seats because it seemed like everyone else in Milan had the same idea.

Church of the Madonna of Montallegro

After a rather captivating morning in Chiavari, we took a ten minute train ride to Rapallo and headed up to one of my favorite Riviera spots, Montallegro for lunch. (see http://thisitalianlife.blogspot.it/2012/02/life-montallegro.html for more about Montallegro).  It’s a bit of a haul to get up there, first the breathtaking ride in the funicular – aka ski lift - that takes you on high above the tree covered mountain and then the trek up the stony path and open air staircase to the church of the Madonna of Montallegro.

The church itself is worth the trip, but if you go around to the back of the church and take the path through the dense forest – a little like a Hansel and Gretel - at the end of the path there isn’t a gingerbread cottage, but a small, family run hotel/bar/restaurant, il Pellegrino. It is set in a clearing of towering, ancient trees with long, graceful.  leaf filled branches that protect you from the midday sun. If you choose a table under the trees, and everyone does, you can sit and enjoy great food and one of the most spectacular views of the Riviera to be found.

The Path Through the Woods

The menu isn’t extensive, a smattering of pastas and main courses, appetizers appropriate for the season – melon and prosciutto seemed to be everyone’s appetizer of choice that day, including Gary and Chris. I passed on an appetizer, but not on the pasta. Gary ordered homemade tagliolini with Porcini mushrooms that was so delicious he swooned with every mouthful. Chris tried the ravioli with nut sauce, a Ligurian specialty, and I ordered lasagna with pesto. A mezzo litro of house white, a local white wine from the nearby hills behind Chiavari and we were in seventh heaven. 

Sitting up on that mountainside, with a cool breeze coming in off the sea, a spectacular view of the Riviera, good food, great service, it was a perfect afternoon. It’s no wonder we lingered until well past 4 PM, and we were not alone. None of the other diners seemed to be in any particular hurry to get back down Rapallo and the blistering 90 degree day either.

Fresh, Green Ligurian Basil

Lasagna with pesto is a great summer dish, light and tasty and relatively easy to prepare. The technique is exactly the same as that for regular lasagna. Sauce on the bottom of the pan, layer of noodles, more sauce, more noodles, well you get the idea. In this recipe the sauce is made of pesto and béchamel. 

You can use the no-boil lasagna noodles if you want, just remember that they need a lot of sauce to cook properly, or you can use regular lasagna noodles and pre-cook them. Or, if you are lucky enough to have a pasta shop nearby, you can use fresh lasagna noodles, which are the best.

I found this recipe for lasagna with pesto on theitaliandishblog.com and the only thing I changed was the sprinkle of oregano on top. It's probably one of those small variations that you see in all regional cooking, and there certainly isn't any harm in a bit of oregano, but in my Ligurian experiences it has always been served with a sprinkle grated Parmesan and small pieces of mozzarella on top. Other than that the recipe is a true and authentic version.  

 Pesto Lasagna

PESTO LASAGNA

makes an 8x8 inch pan

4-8 servings

 

Pasta:

10 - 20 no-cook lasagna noodles or fresh pasta sheets, cooked or regular lasagna noodles, cooked

Pesto:

3 ounces of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, cut into chunks

1-1/2 cups packed fresh basil leaves

1 garlic clove

1/4 cup pine nuts

1/2 cup olive oil

Bechamel:

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

2 cups milk (whole or lowfat)

1 chicken bouillon cube (half, if using Knorr)

1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup grated fresh mozzarella cheese

 Make the pesto:

Place the chunks of Parmigiano cheese into the food processor and process until finely ground.  Add the basil, garlic and pine nuts to food processor.  Process, using pulses, till finely chopped.  With machine running, add the olive oil until pesto is smooth.

Make the béchamel: 

In a heavy medium saucepan, melt the butter.  Whisk in the flour and stir for a couple of minutes, until the flour is cooked.  Add the bouillon cube and allow to dissolve. Whisk. Add about a third of the milk, slowly, and whisk over medium heat.  Add the nutmeg and pepper.  When the sauce is smooth, add another third of the milk and whisk.  When the sauce is smooth again, add the rest of the milk and whisk until smooth. Transfer to a heat proof bowl or Pyrex cup and let cool slightly. (If your sauce is lumpy, just strain it.)

Assemble lasagna:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In an 8x8 pan, place about 1/3 cup of béchamel to coat the bottom of the pan. Lay first layer of lasagna noodles.  Add enough béchamel to coat the noodles.  Add some pesto and spread into the bechamel.  Add a handful of grated Parmesan.  Continue to layer the noodles, béchamel, pesto and Parmesan until the last layer of noodles.  On top of this, spread béchamel only, add the rest of the Parmesan and top with the mozzarella.  Wrap tightly with foil (preferably Reynolds No-Stick foil).

Bake for one hour (if using regular, cooked noodles) or one hour and 15 minutes (if using no-boil noodles). Remove foil and bake for 10 minutes more, until top is golden.  Remove from oven and allow to sit for 15 minutes before slicing.

AUNTIE PASTA: Nuts to You

SARONNO, Italy – The mud slides and floods that have devastated Liguria, and in particular the Cinque Terre, this week, got me thinking about the unique cuisine, a cucina povera, that is also part of the cultural heritage of this area. One of the most delicious dishes that developed in Liguria is pansotti with nut sauce. Nut sauce is simply a combination of crushed nuts, milk soaked bread and a few flavor enhancers like garlic and marjoram. 

Ligurian Nut Sauce

If you have traveled around Italy you know how different the food can be from one region to another. You probably already know that you won’t find Tuscan specialties like pappa di pomodoro (see Auntie Pasta: Viva la Pappa 6/2/2011), or saltless Tuscan bread in Turin, nor will you find Piedmontese specialties like bagna caộda or raviolini del plin with fonduta (see Auntie Pasta: Restaurants of Turin, 9/9/2010) in Florence. 

Given that the regional cuisines developed around the raw materials that were available, in my humble opinion the Ligurians, who had the least to work with, a few herbs and nuts and olive oil, ended up with one of the best cuisines in Italy. Salsa di noci, (nut sauce) known as Tocco de nux in Genovese dialect, is a perfect example. Here’s the simple, but delicious recipe. 

Salsa di Noci

1 glove of garlic

250 ml of whole milk

Marjoram, (one stem of fresh is best but a sprinkle of dried marjoram is ok too.)

250 grams of walnuts

½ wine glass of olive oil

40 grams of soft, white bread (no crusts) cut into small cubes

40 grams of Parmigiano Reggiano

30 grams of pine nuts (optional)

Salt (q.b. quanto basta or - to taste)

To make the nut sauce (1) first blanch the nuts in boiling water for at least 5 minutes so they are easier to peel. Then drain them and let them cool. In the meantime  (2) put the cut up bread in a bowl and cover with the milk, and (3) when they have absorbed the milk, squeeze them dry and put them in another dish, keeping the milk apart.

Peel the nuts, one by one (4) and put them in a blender (or in a pestle if you are using a mortar and pestle), together with the pine nuts, garlic, cheese (5) and oil (6).

Add the soggy bread and the marjoram (7) and whiz it all together in the blender adding a little milk (from the milk you set aside)  if needed, until the mixture is creamy and dense (8), then add salt.  The nut sauce (9) is then ready to use.  

If you are using a mortar and pestle, be sure to pound the mixture energetically, adding a little oil or milk (the milk you set aside earlier). You can also save yourself a little work by buying already peeled walnuts in the grocery store. If you are not fond of garlic just leave it out.  While this recipe is not exactly like the original, it still very good. 

Pansotti with Salsa di Noci

 Salsa di noci is most often served with pansotti alla Genovese which are a type of ravioli filled with a mix of herbs and a bit of ricotta.  

If you read this blog with any regularity you know that everything you eat and eat with here in Italy, has a story behind it, and salsa di noci is no different. It seems the sauce was invented by Ligurian farmers to go with their pansotti, a ravioli that was given this odd name because it is a little paunchy, or ‘un po panciuta’.

In the past, pansotti were filled with whatever herbs and vegetables the farmers had at their disposal. It was never the same and so the combination – whatever it was – became known as ‘preboggion’. Pregoggion could be made up of whatever herbs were in season like Swiss chard, borragine,  pimpinella,  dente di cane,  raperonzolo, l'ortica,  cicerbita and parsley. And other than the Swiss chard, dandelion and parsley, I don’t have a clue what the others are.

Borragine

As for the nut sauce, you can put it on almost any type of small, vegetarian ravioli. It will keep in the frig for a couple of days, but not much longer. If it gets too thick, thin it with a few drops of milk. 

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