Preparation

• To make your Halloween savory pie, start by cooking the spinach. For convenience, I used frozen ones, and the weight of 600 grams is as stated on the package, so of the frozen product.

• When cooking spinach, I prefer not to boil them in water but to cook them gently in a pan.

• Take a casserole, add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, and brown half a clove of garlic.

• Then add the frozen spinach cubes, just a drop of water, and close with a lid.

• Cook over low heat until the spinach becomes soft. Check from time to time and, if necessary, add more water, always a little at a time.

• When the spinach is nice and soft, turn off the heat, place the spinach in a strainer, and using the back of a spoon, press them against the walls of the strainer to remove all the vegetation liquid.

• This step is crucial because eliminating all the liquids allows for a drier filling and prevents the puff pastry from becoming too soft after baking.

• If necessary, or to do it faster, you can squeeze the spinach by hand. Once they have released all the liquids, chop them with scissors and place them in a bowl.

• Add the ricotta inside. It also needs to be well-drained, and if necessary, place it in a strainer to drain.

• Also add a medium whole egg, a pinch of pepper if you like, the diced mortadella, and a couple of tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese. Adjust the salt and mix everything well.

• At this point, take the first roll of puff pastry and place it in a baking pan (about 12-13 inches) with all the parchment paper.

• Fill the bottom by pouring all the filling you have prepared on top and, with a spatula, spread it out evenly over the entire surface.

• At this point, you just need to grab a piece of paper and a pen!! For what? Simple, to give a monstrous face to your pie!

• You can give it the expression you prefer, more or less monstrous; that’s not what matters. What matters is having fun and letting your imagination run wild!

• Draw a face with eyes, nose, and mouth on the paper. Then take the other roll of puff pastry, unroll it on a work surface, and cut out the eyes, nose, and mouth with a sharp knife.

  

• With the tip of a knife, without going deep into the pastry, make long cuts across the entire “face”, as you see in the drawing.

• Gently lift the cut-out pastry and place it on top of the filled base. Make sure to press the edges WELL against the other pastry using the tines of a fork to seal them.

  

• This step is important to prevent the filling from leaking out during baking. Bake the Halloween pie in a preheated static oven for about 40-50 minutes at 340°F.

• The baking time varies from oven to oven. When it has reached a nice golden color, remove from the oven.

  

• And there you have it, your monstrous and delicious Halloween savory pie with ricotta, spinach, and mortadella is ready to be devoured! You’ll amaze your friends and entertain the little ones! Enjoy your meal!

  Recipe and Photos by Gabry © copyright – all rights reserved

• On Facebook, you can also find the video to make this monstrous Halloween pie, so it’ll be even easier to prepare it 😉

  Video Recipe: Savory Halloween Pie with Spinach and Ricotta

• Possible Variations:

  Don’t like ricotta? You can fill the savory pie only with vegetables and cheese.

• Cook the vegetables you prefer (zucchini, eggplants, broccoli, peppers) and put them in a bowl.

• Break an egg inside and mix. Add Parmesan cheese and adjust with salt and pepper.

• Add cheese pieces and, if you like, diced cooked ham.

• Pour everything on the first puff pastry disc. Cover with the cut-out pastry and bake the same way!

• Do you like ricotta but not spinach? You can use any vegetable you like based on the season.

• How can you replace mortadella? With cooked ham, speck, turkey breast, thinly sliced bacon, salami, etc.