Crescia Pasquale

Pizza di Pasqua also called Crescia Pasquale is a traditional Italian Easter cheese bread, especially from regions like Marche and Umbria. It’s rich, savoury, and slightly airy, perfect with cured meats and boiled eggs for breakfast!

Ingredients

Starter (optional but recommended)

100 ml warm milk

10 g fresh yeast (or 3 g dry yeast)

1 tsp sugar

100 g flour

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Dough

400 g strong flour (00 or bread flour)

4 eggs

100 ml milk (lukewarm)

100 g grated Pecorino Romano

100 g grated Parmigiano Reggiano

150 g That's Amore Scamorza, cubed

80 ml extra virgin olive oil (or 80 g melted butter)

10 g salt

Black pepper (generous, freshly ground)

Instructions

Step 1

Make the starter (optional but improves flavor): Mix warm milk, yeast, sugar, and flour. Let sit for ~20–30 minutes until bubbly.

Step 2

Make the dough: In a large bowl, combine flour, cheeses, salt, and pepper. Add eggs, milk, oil, and the starter (or directly add activated yeast if skipping starter). Mix until a soft dough forms.

Step 3

Knead for 10–15 minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough should be soft but not sticky.

Step 4

Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise 2–3 hours (or until doubled).

Step 5

Shape into a ball and place in a tall, greased mold (like a panettone mold or deep cake tin). Let rise again until it reaches near the top (1–2 hours).

Step 6

Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Bake for 40–50 minutes. If browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil.

Step 7

Let cool completely before slicing (important for texture). Enjoy with hard boiled eggs and salumi.

Step 8

Add small cubes of cheese (like scamorza or provolone)

Step 9