We all had a chance to say goodbye to him Saturday morning. I sat next to him, and pet him and told him that he was a good dog. I told him that he didn’t need to hold on any longer. He was a good dog. If you have been watching my channel for some time, you know what a big part he was in my family.
I know that my grief does not compare to so many who are grieving the loss of loved ones at this time of the pandemic, yet I still grieve. It is a different kind of grief, yet it is a real feeling. Samson was a big part of my life for the past 8 years. When we brought Samson home, we knew it would be for life. We also knew that Bernese Mountain dogs do not have a long lifespan. He was my buddy, my shadow. Dogs hold a special place in our lives. I can tell you that Samson held a special place in my life. I am sad at my loss, and I miss my dog…My life is different now. Better for having had Samson in my life.
My family and I have never really had a traditional Easter meal, but a couple of years ago I learned about the classic Italian Easter Pie and decided to try it myself. I thought it would me a nice way to celebrate Easter with my family. During my research I found that everyone seems to have their own way of making Italian Easter pie. Since no two recipes are the same, I came up with my own version. The ingredients can get a bit expensive, so I did not end up making it last year as my budget was pretty tight. This Easter, with everyone staying home because of covid19, I wanted to do something to make Easter special. What better way than to make an Italian Easter Pie, also known as Pizza Rustica. I am not Italian, but I do appreciate Italian food. I prepared it two ways, a traditional pie and a low carb pie.
I have only made these twice, so I am still learning, I am not an expert, but if you do decided to try my Italian Easter Pie recipe, let me know, I would love to hear how it turned out for you. Just remember, I am not an expert.
Italian Easter Pie (Pizza Rustica) Makes 2 pies
For the pie crust:
2 cups warm water
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 tablespoon Instant Yeast
1/2 cup olive oil
5 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon salt
Add the yeast and sugar to the warm water. Let it sit for about 5 minutes.
To this add the olive oil and salt. Slowly mix in the flour, one cup at a time. Knead for about 5 minutes, then cover and let rest for 2 hours.
For the filling:
11 eggs
1 1/2 pound Italian cheese, you select the type and amount of each, but you will need approximately 1 1/2 pounds. I used Provolone, Parmesan, and Pecorino Romano. (Some people use ricotta cheese, but I did not, as I said, you can select your own type of cheese.)
1 1/2 pounds Italian sausage/meats, you can select the type and amount of each. Here are some suggestions: prosciutto, sopressata, mortadella.
Mix all of these ingredients together in a bowl, then set aside.
1 egg plus 1 tablespoon water to use for the egg wash.
To assemble the pies: You will need two 8 1/2 -9 inch deep-dish pans. Spring form pans work great. I greased and lined the bottoms of my pans with parchment paper. Be sure to also grease the sides of the pans. Divide your dough into four sections. Roll out the dough. First I roll the bottom crusts and line the pans with the dough. Then add half of the filling to each pan. Roll out the top crusts and place on the filled pies. I cut the top crusts into strips and did a basket weave on the top of the pie. Seal the edges as you see fit. At this point you will want to use the egg wash on the top crust. Gently brush the egg wash on the top crust. Now it is time to bake your Italian Easter Pie. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour 15 minutes, until nice and golden brown on top. Ovens very in temperature, so be sure to check on your pie. This recipe makes 2 pies.
Low Carb variation:
The filling is the same as the regular pie, but instead of the dough recipe, you will want to use a low carb crust recipe. I am still working on a recipe for my low carb version. This is what I have so far:
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup of my baking blend (I am sure you could use the Trim Healthy Mama Baking blend.)
1/2 cup oat fiber (NOT oat flour)
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
4 tablespoons softened butter
5 tablespoons sour cream
Combine ingredients and form into two balls. Cover with plastic and refrigerate for an hour. Roll out the dough between two pieces of parchment paper. I found this dough to be quite sticky. Gently remove the rounds from the parchment paper and fill the bottom of the baking round. This is tricky, but the dough is forgiving and you can just press it into the bottom and sides of the pan. Fill the bottom crust with half of the filling. If you are making only 1 pie, you can half the filling recipe. Then roll out the top half, again being careful with this sticky dough. Make your top as intricate or simple as you like. I did the basket weave on my pie.
Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until done. Oven temperatures very, so keep an eye on the pie toward the end of the cooking time. My pie was a golden brown and bit bubbly on the edges when I pulled it out of the over.
Enjoy your Italian Easter Pie. Let me know if you try my recipe. I have only made these twice, so I am still learning, I am not an expert.
Samson joined our family, when he was just a tiny pup. Well, tiny may not be the best word to describe him as a puppy. Bernese Mountain Dogs are never tiny, not even when they are puppies. Even so, he was so cute and cuddly. Right from the beginning he won our hearts. It is hard as our dogs age and get old. We had a scary night, but Samson pulled through. I don’t know how much longer he will be with us, so I am thankful for the time we have.
From the time I started to learn to bake, I have been baking cookies. All through high school I would bake cookies. Arriving home from school I would pull out the ingredients and whip up a back of cookies. My favorites were chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter cookies. I would often make other kinds of cookies, but those were my favorites. Since that time I have realized that baking cookies is relaxing for me. When I am stressed or concerned about something I will navigate toward the kitchen and once again start a batch of cookies.
For many years, I would make big batches of cookies. As my family grew I learned to double and triple batches. As one would expect, kids grow up and move away from their parents home. This is the situation I have found myself in…my kids, one by one, are growing up and leaving home. It has been an adjustment downsizing my cookie batches, plus, I have cut out sugar and refined flours from my diet, so I have had to stretch and search for new recipes. It is sometimes challenging, but even so, I still find the act of baking cookies relaxing, what better time to bake cookies than during a pandemic? Relaxing and rewarding with a sweet treat at the end of the process.
In this video I make two different batches of peanut butter cookies.
When I was a child my older sister and I would walk to school together, well most days we would walk together, some days she would try to ditch me and run off. I thought she was the most awesome person in the whole world and would follow her anywhere, however she did not always like having a little sister tagging along. This would be a battle between us all the way through high school. Even so, most days we would walk together. Some of my favorite morning walks to school were when the weather was frosty and the standing puddles would freeze over leaving a nice icy layer on top, perfect for cracking. There was nothing as exciting as the race to see who would be the first to reach the frozen puddles to crack the ice. I love the sound of that cracking ice. I guess I never grew out of it. The excitement I felt then is just as real today, the only thing that would make it better would be to share the experience with my older sister once again, however my sweet sister passed away a few years ago and I miss her terribly, so I am thankful for those memories.
Today’s video brought back so many sweet memories of my big sister.
I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed making it.