Genoese people often get some ‘ready meals’ at the local deli shops and the most well-known delis in town often have a long queue and people need to get a number to be served.
At a deli shop you can buy fresh pasta (such as ravioli and linguine), sauces, pickles, pasta salads.
But, the protagonists of Genoese deli shops are the typical Ligurian savory pies.
The pastry that is used in Genoese savory pies is unlike any other Italian pastry and it does not involve the use of butter or other animal fats, but only a little extra virgin olive oil.
These versatile savory pies are good for any occasion, as an aperitif, as a second course and even as a meal and they are traditionally filled with chard, pumpkin porridge, rice and cheese or spinach and Prescinsêua cheese.
The Prescinsêua is a typical Ligurian dairy product of the province of Genoa and it is a type of curd.
It is characterized by a consistency halfway between yogurt and ricotta and it has a rather sour taste.
It is made with rennet extracted from dairy calves.
Such cheese is usually used for the filling of ravioli or pies and it is not eaten as is, given its sour taste.
It is believed that it is a product of very ancient origins, most likely inspired by the processing of fresh milk.
Once mainly used as the filling for the famous focaccia di Recco, it has over time been replaced by stracchino, given its low production and the exponential increase in demand for this type of focaccia.
One of my favorite pies is the Torta Verde with rice and zucchini cake which is prepared throughout western Liguria too and it is truly delicious!
It is prepared with homemade pastry and stuffed with zucchini, beets, rice, eggs, and parmesan.
This delicious savory pie is perhaps the most common one you can find, and it is served in the cafés, delicatessens, and bakeries all around our region.
It is served cut into squares or slices if cooked in round pans.
It is delicate, but at the same time very tasty and delicious and it is excellent to serve as finger food, at buffets and parties.
Savory pie with chards
The beauty of the Ligurian Torta Verde (literally green pie) with rice and zucchini cake is that it can be prepared in advance because it is also very good served at room temperature and I find it to be even tastier the following day.
I can teach you how to make it right here with my version of the recipe.
Ingredients for the pastry
250 g of all-purpose flour
water
salt
yeast for savory preparations
For the filling
80 g of rice
400 g of zucchini
1 Onion
3 eggs
80 g of grated cheese
100 g of chard
2 tablespoons of olive oil
salt to taste
Preparation
Wash the zucchini and cut them into ring slices.
Peel the onion, wash it and slice it.
In a saucepan, cook the chard for 5 minutes, squeeze them well and transfer them to a small bowl. Chop them up.
Bring salted water to a boil in a saucepan and cook the rice for 5 minutes.
Pour the olive oil into the same saucepan where you cooked the chard and sauté the onion for 3 minutes.
Add the zucchini, the salt and some pepper if you want and cook for 10 minutes.
Turn off the stove and add the rice, chard, cheese and eggs. Mix the filling well with a wooden spoon and let it cool.
Now prepare the pastry. In a bowl, sift the flour with the yeast and salt, add the water and olive oil. Knead until you get a smooth and homogeneous dough.
Fill the pastry with the filling and bake for half an hour.
