Pastiera is a traditional Easter cake from Naples that is still far too little known beyond Italy. With its distinctive filling and tender pastry, it combines rich aroma and festive character in a unique dessert.
Ingredients: 10 servings
| Ingredients | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | l | milk |
| ½ | kg | peeled wheat grains or pearl barley |
| 50 | g | butter |
| ½ | kg | fresh ricotta |
| 8 | eggs (4 whole, 4 yolks) | |
| 100 | g | sugar |
| 1 | untreated lemon, for zest | |
| 1 | untreated orange, for zest | |
| 2 | vanilla pods | |
| Ingredients | ||
|---|---|---|
| 4 | eggs (2 whole, 2 yolks) | |
| 200 | g | butter |
| 500 | g | flour |
| 150 | g | sugar |
| A pinch of salt | ||
The day before baking, prepare the wheat: melt the butter in the milk, then soak the wheat grains or barley in it overnight. The next day, cook everything for about 40 minutes until the grains are soft, then drain.
For the dough, the butter and eggs should be as cold as possible. Mix the flour, sugar, and salt well. Cut the butter into small pieces using a knife or pastry scraper and add it to the dry ingredients. Quickly work everything into a dough—only until it just comes together.
For the filling, mix all ingredients well, adding the finely grated zest of the lemon and orange. Fold in the cooked wheat or barley last.
Roll out the dough to about 5 mm thickness and line a cake tin with it. Trim any overhanging edges and set the leftover dough aside.
Preheat the oven to 160 °C. Roll out the remaining dough again and cut it into strips. Pour the filling into the prepared tin and arrange the strips decoratively on top.
Bake the pastiera for about 1 hour, then let it cool slightly and dust with powdered sugar before serving.
