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    Home » Recipes » Entree

    Published: Feb 11, 2022 · Modified: Dec 6, 2022 by carlocao · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads

    Vegan Spinach Pie with Ricotta

    Diesen Beitrag gibt es auch auf: Deutsch

    Jump to recipe

    This vegan spinach pie is my delicious version of a famous Italian pie called torta pasqualina which is a savory pie traditionally baked for Easter, that is made of layers of spinach, ricotta, and egg.

    Image: vegan spinach pie

    To create this vegan version, I omitted the eggs (which I never liked in the traditional version anyway) and replaced the traditional ricotta with almond ricotta (soy or cashew ricotta works too).

    This spinach pie is quick to make, super delicious and can be served as both lunch or dinner.

    Before you jump into the kitchen to make this spinach pie, I recommend you read the blog post carefully. The recipe is simple, but there are a few steps to follow.

    Jump to:
    • Ingredients
    • Vegan Ricotta
    • Vegan Cream
    • Vegan Butter
    • Puff Pastry
    • Spinach
    • Step 1: Caramelizing the onions
    • Step 2: Adding spinach & cream
    • Step 3: Toasting breadcrumbs
    • Step 4: Making the layers
    • Step 5: Topping and baking
    • More recipes that you may like
    • If you try this recipe….
    • Pinterest
    • 📖 Recipe/Rezept
    • 💬 Comments/Kommentar
    Image: vegan spinach pie

    Ingredients

    Let's start with the ingredients you need for this spinach pie. To make this beauty you'll only need the following 10 ingredients:

    • vegan ricotta
    • frozen spinach
    • onion
    • garlic
    • breadcrumbs
    • plant-based cream
    • puff pastry
    • nutmeg
    • salt & pepper
    Image: Ingredients

    Vegan Ricotta

    Vegan ricotta cheese is becoming more and more available in most supermarkets. You can use soy-, cashew- or even almond-ricotta for this recipe.

    If you can't find it anywhere, you can also make it yourself. In fact, making vegan ricotta is super easy. I'll leave the link with the recipe here.

    Image: vegan ricotta

    Vegan Cream

    We need the vegan cream to make the spinach filling creamier and to brush the spinach pie before it goes into the oven. If you can't find it anywhere, you can leave it out or use unsweetened soy milk instead.

    You can use soy cream as well as oat or cashew cream. The most important thing is that it is unsweetened.

    Vegan Butter

    As for the vegan butter, you can use either margarine or a plant-based butter. Both work well.

    Image: vegan spinach pie

    Puff Pastry

    The traditional version of Torta Pasqualina is made with shortcrust pastry. Personally, I've never liked shortcrust pastry too much, so I replaced it with puff pastry.

    You can find puff pastry in any supermarket and it's practically always vegan because it's made with palm oil and no longer with butter.

    Image: vegan spinach pie

    Spinach

    I prefer to use frozen spinach for this recipe for two reasons. First, because to get 800 grams (28 oz) of cooked spinach, we would have to buy a huge amount of fresh spinach.

    Second, because frozen spinach is easy to squeeze after thawing (we need to squeeze it to prevent the pie to have too much moisture in it).

    But if you want to use fresh spinach, go for it. Buy enough to get about 800 grams of cooked spinach and squeeze it well after it cools.

    I am a spinach lover, so I like to use spinach to make this pie. However, it can also be substituted with the same amount of kale.

    Image: spinach filling

    Step 1: Caramelizing the onions

    We start making our spinach pie by caramelizing the onions.

    To do this, we heat some of the vegan butter, add the finely chopped onions and sauté them until they are golden brown. The onions are ready when they are nice and soft and have a caramel-like color.

    Image: caramelizing onions

    Step 2: Adding spinach & cream

    Once the onions are caramelized, we add spinach and cream. Then we season with salt, pepper and nutmeg and mix it all together.

    Next we remove the pan from the heat and let the spinach cool briefly. In the meantime, we can prepare the breadcrumbs as follows.

    Image: spinach mixture

    Step 3: Toasting breadcrumbs

    To make the bottom of the pie crispy, we sprinkle it with a thin layer of breadcrumbs. In this way, the breadcrumbs absorb the excess liquid in the ricotta and especially in the spinach.

    To make this layer extra tasty and delicious, we need to brown the breadcrumbs in butter for a few minutes. To do this, we first melt the vegan butter in a pan, then add the breadcrumbs and sauté until golden brown.

    Then we take the pan off the heat and let it cool briefly.

    Image: roasted breadcrumbs

    Step 4: Making the layers

    When both the spinach filling and the breadcrumbs are ready, we can finally make the pie.

    We start by lining the bottom and sides of a 21 cm (8 inch) baking pan with parchment paper. Then we roll out a puff pastry and place it in the mold so that it covers the bottom and sides of it.

    Image: setting the puffpastry in the pie tin

    Then we add the breadcrumbs and spread them with a spoon to make an even layer.

    Image: adding a layer of bread crumbs into the pie

    Then we add the spinach filling and do the same.

    Image: adding a layer of spinach into the pie

    Finally we top the pie with a final layer of ricotta.

    Image: adding a layer of ricotta into the pie

    Step 5: Topping and baking

    When the layers are ready, we take the second puff pastry, roll it out and place it on the ricotta layer.

    Then we cut off the excess dough, press the edges together and roll them to the inside of the pie.

    Next we brush the pie with the cream, sprinkle it with a pinch of salt flakes and some fresh thyme and bake it for 35 minutes in the middle of the oven.

    Image: topping the pie with a layer of puffpastry
    Image: sealing the edges of puffpastry
    Image: topping the pie with thyme
    Image: vegan spinach pie

    More recipes that you may like

    • Vegan gnocchi with creamy tomato sauce
    • Vegan lemon ricotta ravioli with brown butter, sage and walnuts
    • Delicious vegan oat schnitzel
    • Vegan butter chicken (Murgh Makhani)

    If you try this recipe….

    Have you made this vegan spinach pie? Then let me know! Leave a comment, rate the recipe and don't forget to tag a photo with #carlocao or #vegaliciously on Instagram or Tiktok.

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    📖 Recipe/Rezept

    Vegan Spinach Pie with Ricotta

    Carlo Cao
    This spinach pie is quick to make, super delicious and can be served as both lunch or dinner.
    5 from 42 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 25 mins
    Cook Time 35 mins
    Total Time 1 hr
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Italian
    Servings 6

    Ingredients
      

    Pie

    • 100 g vegan butter ((3½ oz))
    • 2 onions thinly sliced
    • 2 cloves of garlic chopped
    • 800 g frozen spinach defrosted and squeezed well ((28 oz))
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp nutmeg
    • 100 ml vegan cream ((⅖ cup))
    • 100 g breadcrumbs ((3½ oz))
    • 350 g vegan ricotta made from soy or almonds ((12½ oz))
    • 2 vegan puff pastry sheets rolled out and round 33cm (13'')

    Topping

    • 1 tbsp vegan cream
    • 2 tsp fresh thyme
    • 1 tsp salt flakes optional

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 190 °C (370 °F).
    • Heat 50 g (1¾ oz) butter in a frying pan. Add onion and garlic and sauté until caramelized (5-10 minutes).
    • Add spinach, salt, nutmeg and cream, mix well and set aside.
    • Heat the remaining butter in a frying pan. Add breadcrumbs and sauté until golden brown. Set aside.
    • Cover the bottom and sides of a cake pan (Ø 21 cm, 8'') with baking paper.
    • Roll out a sheet of puff pastry and place it in the pan so that it covers the bottom and sides of the pan.
    • Cover the bottom with the breadcrumbs-mixture, top with the spinach and finish with a layer of ricotta.
    • Top the cake with the second sheet of puff pastry, cut off the excess dough and press the edges together and roll towards the inside of the pie.
    • Brush the pie with cream and top with salt flakes and fresh thyme.
    • Bake for 35 minutes at 190 °C (370 °F).
    Keyword ricotta, spinach pie, Torta Pasqualina
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Sheri says

      December 05, 2022 at 4:56 pm

      5 stars
      Delicious!!!! OMG 🥰😋

      Reply
    2. Maria Salerno NY says

      November 29, 2022 at 5:26 am

      5 stars
      Incredible recipe…coming from an Italian!

      Reply

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    I'm Carlo Cao a Swiss-Italian foodie! I started cooking for my whole family when I was 12 and since then I have never stopped. Welcome to my kitchen and let my recipes inspire you!

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