Home > Index > Breakfast >

Italian Easter Pie with Homemade Sausage

Also known as Pizza Rustica, and similar to a quiche, this Italian Easter pie is made up of homemade Italian sausage, cheeses, and eggs in between two homemade crusts.

Email This Recipe

Save & Share

28 people Yepped this recipe

servings: 6

total time: 2 hours 45 minutes

added on 07/12/2026

recipe by: Frankie

INGREDIENTS

CRUST:
1 cup warm whole milk
1 packet (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
3 cups-all purpose flour
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
FILLING:
8 ounces ground pork
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp ground fennel seed
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
salt & freshly ground black pepper
16 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
8 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 ounce freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 large eggs, beaten
ASSEMBLY AND BAKING:
1 tsp olive oil
1 large egg
1 TBSP whole milk

CONVERSION CALCULATOR

DIRECTIONS

MAKE THE CRUST:
Stir together the warm milk and yeast in a large mixing bowl.
Stir in the flour, oil, and salt until combined.
Use your hands to knead the dough in the bowl until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
Loosely cover the bowl then set aside a warm place to rise for about 1 hour.
MAKE THE FILLING:
In a large bowl mix together the ground pork, garlic, onion, fennel, crushed red pepper, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp black pepper until well combined.
Cook the pork mixture in a skillet over medium heat, breaking up the pork as it cooks, until browned and cooked through, about 8 minutes.
Transfer the pork to a paper towel lined plate to absorb any excess grease and set aside.
Mix together the ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan, eggs, and 1/2 tsp salt in a large bowl then stir in the cooked pork.
ASSEMBLE AND BAKE:
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Brush the inside bottom and sides of an 10-inch pie or tart pan with olive oil.
Take 2/3 of the dough and stretch or roll it out it to fit into the pie pan pressing the dough up the sides of the pie pan with about 1/2-inch hanging over the edge.
Spread the filling evenly onto the dough.
Take the remaining dough and stretch or roll it out to fit on top of the pie pan with about 1/2-inch hanging over the edge.
Roll and pinch the edges of the doughs all round to seal.
In a small bowl beat together the egg and milk then brush the top of the dough evenly with the egg mixture, just enough to cover the dough with a thin film then discard any leftover egg mixture.
Cut 6 slits, 1 to 2 inches long, on the top of the dough to allow steam to escape.
Bake in the preheated oven until the filling is set and the crust is well browned, about 1 hour.
Take the pie out of the oven and allow to cool for about 15 minutes before serving.