Italian ham and cheese pie recipe
I always look out for savoury options for breakfast in Italian bars. If I am lucky there will be these warm tomato, ham and cheese pastry slices on offer.
Do get good ham with plenty of flavour. Whether it is smoked or unsmoked it is up to you, but the paper-thin slices filled with water offer nothing to the recipe.
Ingredients
- 2 sheets of all-butter puff pastry (35x23 cm/14x9 in)
- 125 g homemade tomato sauce or fresh tomato passata
- 150 g Gruyère or Cheddar, finely grated
- 150 g cooked smoked or unsmoked ham, thinly sliced
- 1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt and sugar
- 2 sheets of all-butter puff pastry (35x23 cm/14x9 in)
- 4.4 oz homemade tomato sauce or fresh tomato passata
- 5.3 oz Gruyère or Cheddar, finely grated
- 5.3 oz cooked smoked or unsmoked ham, thinly sliced
- 1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt and sugar
- 2 sheets of all-butter puff pastry (35x23 cm/14x9 in)
- 4.4 oz homemade tomato sauce or fresh tomato passata
- 5.3 oz Gruyère or Cheddar, finely grated
- 5.3 oz cooked smoked or unsmoked ham, thinly sliced
- 1 egg, beaten with a pinch of salt and sugar
Details
- Cuisine: Tuscan
- Recipe Type: Pie
- Difficulty: Easy
- Preparation Time: 30 mins
- Cooking Time: 40 mins
- Serves: 8
Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F/Gas 6).
- Unwrap the pastry and stretch the first piece out onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment.
- Spread it with the tomato sauce, leaving a border of 2 cm (3⁄4 in) clear around the edges. If you are using passata, it is generally unseasoned so sprinkle with a little salt and pepper as necessary.
- Now scatter over the cheese, followed by the ham, respecting the clear border.
- Lay the second sheet of pastry on a lightly floured surface and score shallow, diagonal cuts across its surface, to make a diamond pattern. Lay the scored pastry over the first sheet.
- Use your fingertips to push the two layers of pastry together around the edges and seal with the prongs of a fork to make little lines around the border.
- Brush the top with a thin layer of the seasoned beaten egg (this will make it more golden). Keep the rest of the egg for later. Use the tip of a sharp knife to make around 10 small holes in the pastry, to allow the air to escape.
- Let the pie rest in the fridge or a cool place for 10 minutes, then brush it with egg again.
- Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown, then turn the oven down to 170°C (340°F/Gas 3) and bake for a further 10–15 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before serving. It is also good eaten at room temperature.
This recipe is from Tuscany by Katie & Giancarlo Caldesi (Hardie Grant, £25). Photography: Helen Cathcart.
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