Italian Easter Ham Pie

The massive savory pie my Grammi made every year and the version I’ve been trying to recreate ever since.

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Every year around Easter, my Grammi used to make Ham Pie. I’ll be honest—ham pie is a beast of a pie. It’s eggs, ricotta, cheese, and ham baked in crust. Sure, you could compare it to quiche, but this is more than that. Much more.

Many Italian American families do similar things and everyone calls it something different; pizza rustica, pizza piena, or pizza gain. I’m not sure why anyone calls it pizza at all because it is nothing like pizza.

During Lent, many Catholics abstain from eating meats and cheeses (not me, but hey, to each their own), and making this pie for Easter was a way to celebrate and eat all the things again.

Grammi used to boil a couple ham hocks until they were tender. My Grandpa was in charge of shredding the ham; the water from boiling the ham was put on the porch overnight and whatever layer of fat was on top was always the exact amount that she needed to make her pie crust.

I actually perfected my Grammi’s recipe and tested / wrote it down proper, and I have not been able to find it ever since.

Listen, I’m not perfect.

I have, however, perfected a version of it. My version is baked in a springform pan and uses a combination of cubes of ham, salami, pepperoni, and mozzarella, plus cooked Italian sausage, ricotta, parm, and raw eggs.

My Grammi’s ham pie was made in a big sheet tray, like a slab. She used a combination of raw and hard boiled eggs, in addition to the ham, ricotta, scamorza or mozzarella, and grated parm.

I add a lot of black pepper to the crust, which I love. Since I don’t boil any ham, I use lard, but you could also use butter (I used butter when I made it recently and it came out great).

Be warned: this thing is a BEAST. Share it. Freeze some. And definitely enjoy it.

Also, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Elana! <3 Leave a comment and wish her a HBD!

Pizza Rustica Recipe

Servings: 8-10
Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 2 hours