Italian cuisine has firmly entered our lives. Spaghetti, risotto, ravioli - the usual dishes that you can order in a cafe or cook yourself. But it’s so nice sometimes to try something new and original.
Ideal pies for this. Italian chefs have created many excellent recipes. These include not only the world famous Margarita pizza. There are many more delicious open and closed Italian pies. Before analyzing the most interesting options, let's look at the history.
A bit of history
Most modern culinary masterpieces of Italy had their prototypes thousands of years ago. Pies are no exception. Noble persons of ancient Rome rolled up luxurious feasts, which had a myriad of delicious hot dishes, snacks and desserts. Especially in this respect Lucius Licinius Lucullus became famous. At the commander's feasts, fried peacock and grouse were served, and next to these dishes on the tables were round pies, similar to modern pizza. Ancient Roman chefs prepared them from a special sour dough and baked on charcoal. Over the centuries, a myriad of variations of this dish has appeared.
Italian pies (recipes with photos): apple pie
Italy is famous for its amazing fruit pies. They prepare delicate, tasty and light desserts. If you want to please loved ones or friends with such a homemade treat, make an Italian apple pie. The recipe is surprisingly simple, so cooking does not take much time.
Required Products:
- 180 grams of flour;
- 0.125 liters of milk;
- 140 grams of sugar;
- 50 grams of butter;
- two large apples;
- three eggs;
- baking powder;
- salt.
First make the dough. Pour sugar into a bowl, add 3 egg yolks and beat with a mixer. Pour milk into the mixture, pour the sifted flour, one third of a teaspoon of baking powder and salt a little. Beat the dough so that it becomes homogeneous. Melt 25 grams of butter and add to the dough.
Now get down to stuffing. Peel the apples and cut into slices. Pour the dough into a mold covered with parchment. Put apples on top in random order. Press them so that they go deeper into the dough.
After that, pour the pie with melted butter, sprinkle with sugar and put in the oven for about half an hour. The optimum baking temperature is 180 ° C.
Italian treat: lemon pie
Another great dessert option is lemon pie. Cooking it is harder and longer than apple, but it's worth it. An open Italian meringue pie will decorate any table.
Ingredients:
- two lemons;
- 350 grams of flour;
- five eggs;
- half a glass of sugar;
- half a glass of powdered sugar;
- 250 grams of butter;
- five tablespoons of starch;
- one glass of water.
Make shortcrust pastry. Mix cold butter and powdered sugar. Add flour, egg, and also one yolk to the resulting mixture. Knead the dough, mold a ball from it and put it in the refrigerator. After half an hour, get it out, roll it out, put it in a deep form and pierce it in several places. Make high sides. Bake it at 180 ° C for about 20 minutes.
Get stuffed. Squeeze the juice from two lemons into a deep bowl. Pour in a glass of water and add starch. Put the mixture on fire. Cook until it thickens, and stir constantly. When the mixture is ready, add sugar, three egg yolks, grated zest from one lemon. When it cools, add 50 grams of butter. Put the filling on the dough and bake for 5 minutes at 150 ° C.
Prepare the meringue. It is for her that Italian housewives decorate their lemon pies. Beat the whites of the four eggs with sugar and cover the surface of the pie with the resulting mass. Bake in the oven for 25 minutes at 150 ° C.
Calzone
Calzone is a dish that came to us from Milan. Once, Italian culinary masters created such pies to surprise the gourmets who ate the standard pizza. And they succeeded: a crescent-like shape and delicious filling impressed the Milanese.
Ingredients:
- 300 grams of mozzarella;
- 400 grams of tomatoes;
- 100 grams of ham;
- 400 grams of flour;
- 0.2 liters of water;
- olive oil;
- dry yeast;
- sugar;
- basil;
- oregano;
- salt.
First of all, you need to cook the dough. Pour flour, yeast into a deep bowl, one teaspoon of sugar and salt, add a little olive oil and mix.
Now make the filling. Peel the tomatoes and remove from each core. Put them in a sieve and let the excess juice go away. Dice the ham, grate the cheese and put in a deep bowl. Add basil, pepper, oregano and tomatoes, then salt and mix the filling.
Put the dough on a table sprinkled with flour and roll it so that a circle is obtained. Place the filling on one half and cover it with the second. Fasten the edges well. Put the cake on a greased baking sheet. Bake until cooked. The optimum temperature is 200 ° C.
Milanese fish pie
Fish pies are not as common as meat, vegetable or fruit pies. They are most suitable for people who decide to diversify their everyday menu with something unusual. Try the Italian fish pie - don't be sorry!
Required Products:
- 500 grams of fish fillet;
- 70 grams of Dutch cheese;
- two tablespoons of tomato paste;
- 0.25 liters of milk;
- two eggs;
- two tablespoons of flour;
- two tablespoons of butter;
- olive oil;
- salt;
- white pepper.
Start cooking the cake with the preparation of fish fillet. Cut it in a way convenient for you and lightly fry in oil.
Now make the sauce. Heat the butter and add flour to it. During frying do not forget to stir the mass. When it gets a nice light brown tint, start pouring milk in small portions. Stir the sauce carefully so that there are no lumps. When it becomes thick, turn off the heat. Grate the cheese and pour into the sauce. Add tomato paste, a little salt, white pepper and mix.
Put the fish in the sauce. Consistently add whipped yolks and squirrels to it. Shuffle. Lubricate the mold with olive oil, put the fish in it in the sauce and bake for about half an hour.
Italian Spinach Rice Cake
Italian pie with rice and spinach will also help diversify your usual diet. It is nutritious, therefore it is able to quickly and permanently satisfy hunger.
Ingredients:
- 400 grams of frozen spinach;
- 250 grams of rice;
- 50 grams of parmesan;
- three eggs;
- one onion;
- 20 grams of butter;
- nutmeg;
- breadcrumbs;
- black pepper;
- salt.
Put spinach in a saucepan, cover and heat over low heat. In about 10 minutes, he will secrete the juice that needs to be drained. After that, let the spinach cool slightly and squeeze out any excess liquid from it. Cut the plant.
Put the rice cooked and salt it a little. In boiling water, it will cook for about 10 minutes.
Slice the onion and fry it in butter. It should become soft and golden. Beat the eggs with a mixer. Mix them with rice, onion and spinach. Pepper, salt and add nutmeg.
Sprinkle the breading greased with the breading and put the resulting mass into it. Bake at 200 ° C for about half an hour.
Italian Pie (recipe with cherries and ricotta)
Berry dessert with ricotta will not leave indifferent any member of the family. It is unusually juicy and has a rich rich taste. Depending on your preferences, you can use different berries in its preparation, however, the recipe with cherries is a classic.
Required Products:
- 250 grams of riccott;
- cherry (the more the better);
- 300 grams of flour;
- 200 grams of sugar;
- 200 to 250 grams of butter;
- three eggs;
- zest with one lemon;
- salt.
First make the dough. Mix sifted flour with sugar and salt. In the middle, make a small indentation and break one egg there. Rub cold butter into the dough with your hands. Make a ball out of it and put it in the refrigerator.
Get stuffed. Pour sugar into a deep bowl, break 2 eggs into it and beat with a mixer. Add ricotta, zest, cherry and mix.
Take the dough out of the refrigerator, roll it out and put it in a foil or parchment lined form. Cover it with the filling. Bake the cake in the oven at 180 ° C for about an hour.
Which dish to choose?
Such dishes can be used in any life situation. At the weekend, when you want to relax and treat yourself to a simple, but delicious dessert, you can cook an Italian pie with apples or riccott. And on the festive table should be something special. Such is the Italian lemon pie with a charming meringue. As a snack, boldly serve calzone. For an ordinary family dinner, pastries with spinach or fish are good options. As you can see, you can also make original pies at home. Italian restaurants will not provide you with such a choice of dishes as you yourself.
Bon appetit, dear readers!