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Happy Pasquetta!

Date: Mar. 24th 2008
Category: Bread
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Today is Easter Monday and in Italian, we call this day Pasquetta. For many (myself included), today is a holiday. I always enjoy having the day after a big holiday to myself as it gives me a chance to reflect.

I’ve had such a lovely Easter this year.

Not only did my work schedule calm down, but I had the chance to spend time with family and friends.

While Christmas is still my favourite holiday, I find Easter to be just as enjoyable but in different ways.

It’s lighter outside and even though it’s cold, you know that spring is just around the corner. And even though there’s tonnes of food, just as at Christmas time, everything seems just a bit lighter and the pace is a bit slower and not as pressure-filled.

This Easter was also special for me because I finally tried a traditional Easter specialty from Le Marche, the region of Italy where my father is from.

When I was growing up, my father would always regale us at Easter time with fond memories of a type of bread made at this time of year called Pizza di Pasqua or Easter Pizza.

A few times we were given a recipe for this bread by our family in Italy but for some reason, we just never made it. I was a bit reluctant to ask for the recipe again so instead I did some research and cobbled together a recipe that I think is very similar to the one that my father spoke of.

My father told us that they would add salami to their pizza but I decided that for my first try, I would keep the bread simple.

The bread started out with a very basic pizza dough recipe to which I added, after its first rise, flour and grated cheese (Parmigiano and Pecorino) and then beaten eggs. After a second rise, I spread the dough out into two earthenware dishes and let it rise again.

It finally went into the oven and I watched as my dough puffed up into two lovely offerings that were a cross between pizza and bread.

Once out of the oven, it was hard for me not to immediately cut into the bread but I exercised some patience and instead covered my little sweeties up and kept them safe for Easter lunch where I reheated and then served them with thin slices of Prosciutto di Parma.

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The bread was light, soft and had a very faint cheesy flavour. For next year, I think I’ll use more grated cheese and I will definitely add salami.

But for a first try, it was a great success and it felt very special to place a dish on the table that represented my father.

Buona Pasquetta a tutti!

Ciao!

26 Comments

kat

03/24/08 at 11:07 am

Happy Easter Monday!

Simona

03/24/08 at 12:15 pm

What is the name of the place in Marche where your dad comes from?
Your first try looks great.
Buona Pasquetta!

Ginny

03/24/08 at 2:46 pm

That looks delicious! I love having family traditions that involve food! Happy Easter!

Lydia (The Perfect Pantry)

03/24/08 at 5:08 pm

I never knew that there were special foods for Easter Monday. I would not have been able to keep from cutting into this bread right away!

jasmine

03/24/08 at 6:27 pm

Gorgeous, as usual. I think this is one I’ll have to try…

I had hoped to have today off, but alas it was not meant to be. Perhaps next year.

j

Pasticcera

03/25/08 at 6:54 am

Lovely memory and edible too. I’m sure your father would be proud.

Julie O'Hara

03/25/08 at 9:09 am

I love hearing about recreating traditional or family recipes. I’m glad it worked out so well…it looks great. A salami version should be yummy.

Tartelette

03/25/08 at 10:30 am

Easter festivities are very serious in my family but not so much in the Mr’s (small family) so he has had his share of traditionals in the past 4 days!! I am sure your father would be proud! Let us know when you try the salami version, sounds delicious!

michelle @ the smackdown

03/25/08 at 12:38 pm

bunoa pasquetta!

i think i should insist that i get the day off today in honor of my italian heritage. too bad it’s already a quarter to 4! maybe next year.

MyKitchenInHalfCups

03/25/08 at 1:52 pm

Ivonne those are beautiful but teasing photos. Easter and all it’s traditions and family are wonderful especially knowing Spring is on it’s way.

Hillary

03/25/08 at 2:50 pm

What a beautiful bread! Happy holidays to you.

Joy the Baker

03/25/08 at 3:56 pm

What beautifully clean bread! I love trying traditional family recipes. It always feels so special!

gizmar

03/25/08 at 4:00 pm

I just love these old country traditions that tell us about our culture and our heritage. I’d be interested to see how the salami gets added - and also on the second rise - how the egg gets added. I’d love to try this one.

Paz

03/25/08 at 4:34 pm

bunoa pasquetta!
paz

Lisa

03/25/08 at 7:17 pm

Your bread looks delicious.. I can see myself having a slice of it with some of Mama Creampuff’s lasagna. :D

So..uhmm.. can you pack up a few slices of each and send ‘em down? :D

xoxoxoxoxo

joey

03/26/08 at 8:16 am

Belated Easter greetings! What a very special bread you had :) So lovely to have that on your table this Easter :) It sounds delicious too!

Valerie

03/26/08 at 8:32 am

I actually dreamt about this bread the night after reading this post!

cheryl

03/26/08 at 9:01 am

I never even knew what Easter Monday was until I read your blog and then looked it up. I learned something new.

Love this bread. I can see why it was hard not to tear into right out of the oven.

mamma3

03/26/08 at 10:18 am

E’ bellissima! La immagino già farcita con ogni ben di Dio! Elga

Cenk

03/26/08 at 2:28 pm

Happy Holidays!! The bread looks fantastic. I recently baked bagels and it has been a tremendous experience. I can’t wait to bake more bread and this is certainly on my short list!

Mike

03/26/08 at 5:45 pm

Happy holidays and great work with the bread. It looks light as a cloud and sounds very tasty

Lisa RR

03/26/08 at 7:09 pm

I just read about this type of pizza al formaggio in the New York Times (URL above). There is a recipe at the bottom of the article.
Yes, I agree that your version sounds great!

Kim

03/27/08 at 4:57 am

Looks heavenly! Adding this to my to bake list.

katie

03/27/08 at 1:33 pm

How nice to be able to bake something so traditional - and tasty…
I love the dish - it looks hand-painted…
Hmmm, would go well in my kitchen!

Nan

03/28/08 at 4:53 pm

Wow - what a great blog! Happy belated Easter to you! I was just given a jar of Dulce de Leche from a friend who brought it to me from Buones Aires - and I have been saving it for just the right thing - now I know! Thanks!

Francesca Maggi

04/11/09 at 8:42 am

Great Post! I’m adding link (and using your pic) on my own blog..
Although I recall growing up (in Michigan), making the traditional braided Easter Bread…and then you set the hardboiled eggs in there.
Try it out. Visually wonderful.

F Maggi, Rome
http://burntbythetuscansun.blogspot.com

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