You don’t have to wait for the holidays to make my Sweet Italian Easter Pie. The best thing is that instead of making just one pie, it’s just as easy to make two.
I’m going to be using store-bought pie crust dough today, but I’ve included a link to my sweet Homemade Pie Crust recipe at the bottom of this post. If you’re going to make your own pie dough, it’s best to do it the day before.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Inactive Prep Time: 4 hours
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Total Cook Time: 5 hours 5 minutes
Yields: 2 pies (6 slices per pie)
Equipment: 2 (9-inch) metal pie pans, 2 (1/4-sized) rimmed baking sheet pans, 2 large mixing bowls, 2 medium-size bowls, mesh sieve, pastry brush, small mixing bowl, hand-held electric mixer, rubber spatula, powdered sugar shaker, Microplane
Ingredients For 2 Pies:
4 (7.5-ounce) store-bought pie crusts by JusRol
2 (15-ounce) containers of whole milk ricotta, divided and drained between 2 bowls
8 large eggs, divided between 2 bowls
2 (¾ cups) granulated sugar, divided between 2 bowls
2 pinches of Kosher salt, divided between 2 bowls
1 large lemon, zested and juiced (2 tablespoons juice, 2 teaspoons zest), divided between 2 bowls
2 tablespoons of vanilla paste, substitute pure vanilla extract, divided between 2 bowls
2 egg yolks + 1 tablespoon of water
Garnish:
Powdered sugar for dusting
Instructions For the Ricotta Filling:
To make the filling for the pie, in a large bowl, combine the drained ricotta, eggs, sugar, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla. Use an electric mixer to beat together the ingredients until they are well combined and smooth, about 1-2 minutes; set aside.
Assembly:
Take the store-bought pie crusts out of the fridge and let them sit on the counter for 10 minutes before unrolling them. Place the dough gently in a 9-inch pie pan. Once you’ve set the dough into the pan, use your fingers to guide the dough around the edges of the inside of the pie pan. Next, very gently stretch the dough around the top edges to lay the rim of the pan. Refer to the above pictures.
Pour the ricotta filling into the pie crust. Carefully lay the top crust over the pan. First, fold the overhang from the top crust under the edge of the bottom crust to create a thick edge for crimping.
Use your thumb and two forefingers to pinch the dough together, creating a V-shaped effect around the pie’s rim. Repeat this process all the way around the pie to create your desired crimp. Brush the top of both pies with an egg wash.
Notes:
1) In a pinch, you can substitute store-bought pie crust. It’s important to let the store-bought pie crust come to room temperature before unrolling the dough, 10 minutes.
2) If you’re going to use a homemade pie crust (link below is for my sweet pie crust, also known as “pasta frolla”), you do not need to “blind bake” (see the link below for directions on blind baking) the bottom crust before adding the filling for this application. The filling will cook at the same time the crusts cook.
3) You can top this pie with a large piece of rolled-out pie dough or do a more intricate lattice design. Note that the lattice may sink when placed on the filling, but tends to puff back up when baked.
4) You do not need to spray pie tin pans because the fat in the dough will prevent it from sticking during the cooking process.
5) Egg wash is a mixture of 2 egg yolks with 1 tablespoon of water. Wish until combined.
6) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.
Sweet Italian Easter Pie
Equipment
- 2 metal pie pans 9-inch
- 2 rimmed baking sheet pans 1/4-sized
- 2 mixing bowls Large
- 2 mixing bowls Medium-size
- 1 mesh sieve
- 1 pastry brush
- 1 mixing bow Small
- 1 electric mixer Hand-held
- 1 rubber spatula
- 1 powdered sugar shaker
- 1 Microplane
Ingredients
Ingredients For 2 Pies
- 4 7.5 ounce JusRol pie crusts
- 2 15 ounce containers of ricotta cheese Whole milk, divided and drained, divided between 2 bowls
- 8 large eggs divided between 2 bowls
- 2 3/4 cups granulated sugar divided between 2 bowls
- 2 pinches kosher salt divided between 2 bowls
- 1 large lemon (2 tablespoons juice, 2 teaspoons zest), divided between 2 bowls
- 2 tbsps vanilla paste Substitute pure vanilla extract, divided between 2 bowls
- 2 egg yolks + 1 tablespoon of water
Garnish:
- Dusting of powdered sugar
Instructions
- To make the filling for the pie, in a large bowl, combine the drained ricotta, eggs, sugar, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla. Use an electric mixer to beat together the ingredients until they are well combined and smooth, about 1-2 minutes; set aside.Assembly:Take the store-bought pie crusts out of the fridge and let them sit on the counter for 10 minutes before unrolling them. Place the dough gently in a 9-inch pie pan. Once you've set the dough into the pan, use your fingers to guide the dough around the edges of the inside of the pie pan. Next, very gently stretch the dough around the top edges to lay the rim of the pan. Refer to the above pictures.Pour the ricotta filling into the pie crust. Carefully lay the top crust over the pan. First, fold the overhang from the top crust under the edge of the bottom crust to create a thick edge for crimping.Use your thumb and two forefingers to pinch the dough together, creating a V-shaped effect around the pie's rim. Repeat this process all the way around the pie to create your desired crimp. Brush the top of both pies with an egg wash.Place a baking sheet underneath the pie and bake on the center rack for about 45 minutes. You'll know the ricotta pie is done when the center of the pie registers 160°F on a digital thermometer. Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Transfer to the fridge to chill for at least 2 hours. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.There you have it, my Sweet Italian Easter Pie.
Notes
1) In a pinch, you can substitute store-bought pie crust. It's important to let the store-bought pie crust come to room temperature before unrolling the dough, 10 minutes.2) If you're going to use a homemade pie crust (link below is for my sweet pie crust, also known as “pasta frolla”), you do not need to "blind bake" (see the link below for directions on blind baking) the bottom crust before adding the filling for this application. The filling will cook at the same time the crusts cook.
3) You can top this pie with a large piece of rolled-out pie dough or do a more intricate lattice design. Note that the lattice may sink when placed on the filling, but tends to puff back up when baked.
4) You do not need to spray pie tin pans because the fat in the dough will prevent it from sticking during the cooking process.
5) Egg wash is a mixture of 2 egg yolks with 1 tablespoon of water. Wish until combined.
6) Linda Lou Hamel is not a nutritionist or dietitian, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and nutritional value are important to you, I recommend running the ingredients through the online nutritional calculator of your choice. Calories and values can vary depending on the brands you choose.
https://lindalouhamel.com/2014/09/04/homemade-pie-crust/
