Recipes 

Savoury tart with silverbeet (pizza rustica)

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One of my favourite spring classics is pizza rustica, a savoury pie. It’s made with ricotta, pecorino, eggs and silverbeet.

Ingredients

Serves 6-8

Preparation 20min

Cooking  40min

  • 300 g plain flour

  • 75 ml extra-virgin olive oil

  • 60 ml white wine

  • pinch of salt

  • 60 ml cold water, approximately

  • 1 egg

  • 2 tbsp milk

Chard filling

  • 1 bunch Swiss chard or silverbeet, well washed and central rib removed

  • 400 g fresh full-cream ricotta, well drained

  • 4 eggs

  • ½ cup (150 g) diced salami or soppressata (omit for a vegetarian version)

  • salt flakes and freshly ground black pepper

  • ½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Instructions

  1. Resting time 30 minutes

  2. Cooling time 30 minutes

  3. Place the flour, olive oil, wine, salt and water in a food processor and pulse 10-12 times or until the mixture resembles wet sand. Add 2 teaspoons extra water if the dough is too dry. Tip the dough onto a floured surface and press it together with your hands. Shape the dough into a disc, cover it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

  4. Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced). Grease and flour a 20 cm tart tin.

  5. For the filling, blanch the silverbeet leaves in salted boiling water for 2–3 minutes. Drain, then plunge into ice-cold water to preserve their intense emerald hue. Drain again, squeeze out the excess water, coarsely chop and set aside. Place the ricotta in a large bowl and beat until creamy. Add the eggs and salami or soppressata (if using) and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir in the cooked silverbeet.

  6. Take the dough out of the fridge and roll it to 3-4 mm thick. Gently place in the prepared tin and trim the edges, reserving the scraps. Put the filling into the tart shell, decorate the top with a lattice pattern using the reserved pastry scraps. Lightly beat the egg and milk together, then brush the tart with the egg wash. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin before serving.

Note

• You can make the pastry the day before and keep well wrapped in the refrigerator. Allow it to come to room temperature before rolling it out.

Cook’s notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.

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