The Salty Pie

You Cook, I'll Watch

I called my mother-in-law one morning, rambling on about blogs, photos and recipes, and after a long-winded monologue to explain everything except what I really wanted, I finally asked her, “Are you free this week to show me how to prepare one of your recipes?”

Between our two schedules, we chose a Thursday to whip up something tasty from her kitchen. Originally I thought of one of her simple, flavorful pasta dishes, but in the end she suggested a “torta salata.”

A “salty pie” is pretty much what that translates to. Salty because it is not like the typical pie you think of with a berry filling and excessive amounts of sugar.

The torta salata is like a quiche, only with more cheese and less egg.

In order to keep things simple and use ingredients that can easily be located by someone who doesn't live in Italy, she settled on a “Torta Salata with Broccoli and Sausage.”

Therefore, without further ado, here is my mother-in-law’s simple and delicious recipe: 

*Pay attention to the useful tip she provides regarding garlic

Torta Salata with Broccoli and Sausage 

Preparation time: 35 minutes | Cooking time: 30 minutes plus 20 minutes cooling time
Serves: 4 - 6

Ingredients

1 lb Italian Sausage (rope)
1 round puff pastry
1 large head fresh broccoli
1/2 - 3/4 cup scamorza cheese, cubed
1 egg
1 clove of garlic
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 Tbs extra virgin olive oil
pinch salt
pinch chili powder
pie or quiche dish

Scamorza is a smoked cheese made from cow's milk. You can substitute it for another variety of smoked cheese, but we recommend using scamorza if you can locate it.
*Note: We forgot to photograph the egg here so be sure to use one!

Directions

1. Remove the sausage from the casing and place directly into the pan you will cook it in. Set aside.

2. Prepare the washed broccoli by removing the main stem and cutting the florets into small chunks. Set aside.

3. Place some waxed paper in the pie or quiche dish, and then place the puff pastry on top (this prevents the dough sticking to the dish, and usually the Italian torta salata is not perfectly round so it's ok to have wrinkles).

Set aside.

4. Move the pan with the sausage to the stove top and turn on a low/medium heat. Cook for three minutes, then add in the 1/2 cup dry white wine. Turn up the heat slightly and simmer the sausage for about 5 minutes or until the alcohol has evaporated.

Italian Tip: My mother-in-law lances the garlic with a toothpick and leaves it in as it cooks. This renders it more visible, especially helpful if you happen to be cooking various white colored foods. The garlic is used to add flavor and not to be eaten, so adding the toothpick makes it easier to find so it can be removed.

5. Add in the broccoli, a pinch of salt (the cheese and sausage already contain salt, so use it sparingly here), the garlic clove, 2 Tbs olive oil and a pinch of chili powder.
Mix the ingredients and simmer on medium/low heat for 15 minutes, or until broccoli is soft, stirring occasionally.
Remove the garlic and discard, then remove the mixture from the pan and place in a bowl. Let cool for 10 minutes.
Heat the oven to 180° C (350°F). 

6. Once the sausage and broccoli mixture has cooled, add an egg and mix lightly. Spread the contents into the prepared pastry. 

7. Remove outer skin of the scamorza and cut into small cubes.

8. Dot the top of the pie with cubes of scamorza and then place in the pre-heated oven for 30 minutes. 
(*Note: this pie does not have a top crust)

Remove the pie when the top is golden brown and let cool for at least 20 minutes before serving. This is also an excellent make-ahead dish that can be served the next day. 

The finished result is a delicious Salty Pie. I hope you will share your experience in making this delicious dish in the comment area below!