We have arrived at Christmas week, and I can’t even say how, time has literally flown! In anticipation of these holidays, I want to leave you with a stunning, very scenic, and delicious recipe, which is the sunflower pie! It’s a puff pastry filled with a stuffing of spinach, ricotta, and Greek feta, topped with a very inviting pistachio crumble that will toast and become very crunchy as it cooks! It will be perfect to present in the center of a table, where each guest can tear off a petal and enjoy it with a sparkling and fresh aperitif! Besides the holidays, you can prepare this pie for any other occasion, like taking it on a trip, to the office, to the beach, wherever you want! It’s a doubly versatile recipe because you can change the filling each time or create many at once for a buffet with delicious and mouthwatering fillings! I guarantee you’ll always make a great success!
If savory pies are your daily bread, here are some more proposals to bring to your tables:
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: About 20
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients:
- 2 rolls puff pastry (round)
- 18 oz spinach (already cleaned)
- 12 oz sheep ricotta
- 2 oz feta (Greek)
- 1 egg
- 2 oz Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (grated)
- 2 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 pinch salt
- to taste pepper
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1.5 oz pistachio crumble
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
Steps:
Clean and wash the spinach thoroughly under running water, then blanch them for 3-4 minutes on low heat in a large saucepan with just their own water and covering with a lid. Turn off the heat and let the spinach drain on a colander for about 30 minutes or press them well with a fork until all their water is lost (fig. 1).
Chop the spinach completely using scissors (fig. 2).
Meanwhile, in a bowl, after previously draining the ricotta from the whey overnight*, work it into a cream using a spoon (fig. 3).
Add the crumbled feta and chopped spinach and mix the two ingredients well (fig. 4).
Incorporate the egg and nutmeg, then adjust with salt and pepper (fig. 5).
Mix everything and also add the breadcrumbs (fig. 6).
Finally, add the grated Parmesan and mix until you get a creamy mixture (fig. 7).
At this point, on a baking sheet, unroll the first puff pastry disc, leaving it with the paper it is wrapped in and pour a nice portion of spinach and ricotta cream in the center, creating a small mound (fig. 8).
Spread the remaining part of the mixture over the rest of the surface, leaving an inch from the edge and leveling well with the help of a spoon (fig. 9).
Cover with the second disc, making the edges adhere well with the lower disc (fig. 10).
Seal the edges with the tines of a fork (fig. 11).
Using a pizza cutter, cut the pie into 4 parts, leaving the dome intact, then divide each part into another 4 and then each in half, until obtaining 16-18 rays (fig. 12).
Gently twist each ray twice on itself so that the filling is facing up (fig. 13).
You will have thus obtained your sunflower shape (fig. 14).
Meanwhile, in a bowl, beat the yolk with milk and turmeric powder (fig. 15).
Brush the entire surface of the pie with the beaten egg mixture (fig. 16).
Sprinkle the entire surface with the pistachio crumble, concentrating the largest portion right in the center (fig. 17).
Bake in a preheated static oven at 375°F for 25-30 minutes or until golden. Always check in the last minutes because cooking times vary greatly from oven to oven (fig. 18).
Turn off, remove from the oven and let cool before transferring your pie to a serving plate.
And voilà… your sunflower pie with spinach, ricotta, and pistachios is ready to be enjoyed!
Bon Appétit from FeFé’s kitchen!
Storage
👉 You can store the sunflower pie in the fridge for up to 2-3 days and reheat it in the oven or microwave before serving.
Tips, notes, variations, and suggestions
🔵* The best method to drain ricotta, even if it’s not the fastest, involves placing it in a fine-mesh sieve set over a sufficiently tall bowl to collect all the whey produced. Cover with plastic wrap and transfer it to the fridge overnight. After about 12 hours, the ricotta will be ready to use. If you want to do things faster, place the ricotta in a very fine-mesh cloth, perfectly clean, and ‘wring’ it over the kitchen sink, allowing as much whey as possible to escape.
