Crescia di Pasqua – Italian Easter cheesy bread
When I lived in London, one thing I really missed around Easter was the Crescia di Pasqua, an Italian cheesy bread that is a typical dish from the central regions of Italy. It had always been something I was looking forward to eating. I love the cheesy taste, the moist texture and the fact that it partners so well with a good dollop of mayo (for the quickest homemade mayonnaise recipe, click here) and some cut meats, boiled eggs, or even cooked mushrooms. To be honest, it is delicious whichever way you eat it!
Since it is difficult to find it outside those regions, there was no hope I could ever come across it in England, so I resorted to baking it myself, and to my surprise, it came out utterly delicious!
It is said that this bread was first created sometime in the XIX century by some nuns who lived in the Ancona area in the county of Le Marche and that it became a staple of the Easter tradition when people used to have it for breakfast on Easter morning or would take it on the traditional Easter Monday picnic. Nowadays, it is possible to find it in bakeries and coffee places all year round. Still, like Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a Panettone or Pandoro, Easter would not be Easter without having a Crescia di Pasqua.
Like so many traditional dishes, every family has passed on slightly different variations of this cheesy bread recipes. Some people will use different kinds of cheese and add pieces of cheese to the batter; others will use milk, shortening, spices, etc. Everyone has their own recipe. But I am going to share with you the one I have been using. Then, feel free to experiment with it and let me know what you think. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!
Just a note before we get to the recipe:
If you do not have a round tin with high sides, you can use some parchment paper like in my picture or get some paper panettone moulds like these. I have even used a sandwich bread tin before.
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Crescia di Pasqua – Italian Easter cheesy bread
Ingredients
- 250 g All-purpose Flour
- 250 g Strong bread four or Manitoba flour
- 100 ml Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 100 ml Milk or water
- 7 g Dry yeast
- 5 Eggs
- 100 g Parmesan cheese grated
- 100 g Pecorino romano cheese grated
- 8 g Salt
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1 tsp Black pepper or to taste
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg or to taste – optional
- Butter to brush
Instructions
- Grease a round 16cm tin with 12cm high sides or see note above
- Stir the yeast and sugar in the lukewarm milk (or water) and let it rest for a few minutes. It will start to activate and form a foam on the surface.
- In the meantime, mix all the flour and cheese in a big bowl (or in your stand mixer bowl) and make a well in the middle.
- In a small bowl, combine the eggs with the olive oil, the ground nutmeg, the salt and pepper.
- Pour the milk mixture into the middle of the well and start incorporating the flour.
- Next, slowly add the egg mixture and start kneading by hand (if you are not using a stand mixer).
- The dough will feel a little sticky. Work it only a little on a lightly floured surface until you have a “smooth” ball. As you can see from the picture, mine does not look very smooth, as the cheese I used was quite coarse. The smoothness will depend on how finely grated your cheese is. Then, put it in the prepared tin/paper mould, cover it, and let it proof until doubled in size, which can take up to 5 hours.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 180C (static) or 160C (fan). Brush the top of the bread with some melted butter and bake in the oven for around 45 minutes. 10-15 minutes before, start checking the bread. Cover it with some aluminium foil if it is getting too dark on the top. Always test that it is completely cooked by checking with a toothpick. Let it completely cool before slicing it. Enjoy!
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1 month
Tagged afternoon tea, fig, fig leaf tea, fig leaves, foraging