In my family, the Easter season doesn’t begin until we make my grandmother’s famous Ricotta and Citron Easter pie. There’s something so special about recipes that connect us to our roots, and this pie brings that feeling to the table. The unique elements of this golden masterpiece include fresh ricotta, with egg yolks, cinnamon and nutmeg and the unmistakable, sweet-tart pop from the candied orange peel and candied citron. Her pasta frolla crust also adds cinnamon to the classic ingredients for such an aded warming tasting note to the perfectly flaky crust.
The flavors are the perfect balance of creamy, zesty and sweet and the smell of it baking brings me back to her kitchen. This is the first dessert to always disappear at our family Easter celebrations, and my dough recipe makes enough for two pies. We would often double the filling recipe below to make two pies and save one for Pasquetta Monday.
Today, I’m making ribbon cookie strips out of the extra dough dusted with cinnamon and sugar. When I was small, all the kids in the family would wait for the “ribbons” to come out after they baked for about 8-12 minutes at 350 degrees. We would devour them standing in the kitchen and eyeing the beautiful pie while it cooled.
Find my recipe below and enjoy this pie that carries our heritage and represents the renewal of Spring and the Holy Easter Holiday. I’m honored to keep this tradition alive, one citrusy slice at a time. I hope you give my recipe a try and bring a bit of my Easter memories to your home. Follow me for more inspired Italian recipes from Casa Michele’s kitchen.
