Vegan Neapolitan Pastiera Questa ricetta è disponibile anche in italiano
The Neapolitan Pastiera is an Easter cake typical of the Neapolitan tradition and is characterized by a shortcrust pastry that contains a delicious ricotta filling and aromatic orange blossom flavour.
Full-bodied and fragrant, the filling of this delightful cake is rich and compact, but at the same time creamy, full of texture with an intense citrus aroma of orange.
After years of experience with the traditional pastiera, I have here my totally veganized version, which will allow you to continue enjoying the beauty of this Easter cake whilst still maintaining an animal free plant based diet.
A look at the ingredients
Wheat is one of the main ingredients for a good Neapolitan pastiera which is important for its authentic and irresistible flavor that together with ricotta and orange blossom aroma which cannot be omitted makes for such a wonderful recipe. Nowadays it is difficult to find it dry and, for those like me who live abroad, it is also difficult to find it in the “cooked” version in a jar. For this reason, I used its first cousin in this recipe: pearl barley. We will start with its dry version and cook it in the Instant Pot to speed up the time. Obviously it can also be cooked in traditional pots, or, if you are lucky enough to be able to buy the precooked one, you can skip the cooking steps of the wheat, and go directly to the next steps.
We will then blend 50% of the wheat mixture and the remaining 50% will be used whole. This step will give another consistency to our pastiera.
Another key ingredient of the filling to the Neapolitan pastiera is undoubtedly ricotta. The recipe for my homemade vegan ricotta works great in this Easter cake, so I highly recommend it if you like self-production, otherwise any vegetable ricotta on the market will do just as well.
Now let’s move on to the third and last essential ingredient for a good pastiera: orange blossom. Again, here in the UK it is not that common to find it, but it is much easier to find orange blossom water, especially in the so-called “off license” and independent mini markets. And it is this version that I’m going to use in the recipe. Rest assured though, if you are lucky enough to find the aroma in vials (concentrated) or the diluted version, I will also show you how to regulate the dosage of these alternatives.
The candied fruit, and although there are people who just don’t like it, candied fruit peel (mixed citrus) is highly recommended to create a pastiera with the right scent and humidity level. In fact, they guarantee greater preservation of the cake, releasing their moisture into the filling, which makes it soft and moist for over a week. There are those who prefer to replace them with chocolate chips, especially to make it more delicious in the eyes of the little ones. This could be an alternative for non-candied fruit lovers, but be careful, if you use chocolate chips (vegan) you must keep in mind that the pastiera will not preserve as long.
Finally, I would also like to say a few words about the wrapping of this culinary marvel, which is nothing more than a good shortcrust pastry.
Although not among the fundamental and irreplaceable ingredients, shortcrust pastry is undoubtedly important for the realization of this Easter cake.
Obviously, ours will be lactose-free, egg free, because we are making a completely vegan version, but this does not mean that you have to think that it is inferior to that of the traditional recipe, in fact I think you will be surprised at just how good this is.
Personally I remain faithful to my super tested recipe that I have already used and shared in this Apple and Cinnamon Tart, which is divinely suitable for this and a thousand other preparations.
But now let’s see how to make this special dessert step by step.
Vegan Pastiera Napoletana Recipe
Ingredients:
… for the pastry …
300 g Flour
200 g Vegan Butter
100 g Cold Water
80 g Corn starch
50 g Powdered Sugar
½ teaspoon Yeast for Sweets
½ sachet Vanilla (or 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract)
½ lemon peel
Pinch of salt
… for the cooked wheat …
100 g Pearl Barley
200 g Orange Blossom Water (see notes for vial or diluted aroma *)
400 g Soy milk
5 g Vanilla (extract, powder or seeds from 1 pod)
Pinch of salt
…for the filling…
1 serving of Vegan Ricotta (300g)
250 g Sugar
50 g Tapioca
200 g Vegetable Cream (add 25 grams of sugar if unsweetened)
1 Lemon Peel
1 Orange Peel
50-70 g Candied fruit (mix of orange, citron and lemon)
Method:
1. A day before, prepare the shortcrust pastry and ricotta (if you are using the homemade method), and cook the wheat (if you are using the raw wheat).
2. For the pastry. Blend all the ingredients in a blender for a few seconds, until they form a ball. Please note: both vegan butter and water must be cold from the fridge! Then, wrap the dough in plastic wrap or transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator.
3. For cooked wheat (skip this step if using precooked wheat and read the notes). Rinse the pearl barley under plenty of running water, then place it in the Instant Pot together with the rest of the ingredients. Select the High Pressure program and set 45 minutes (slow release = do not open the valve at the end of cooking). Alternatively you can cook on the stove with 200 grams of extra soy milk over high heat until boiling, then lower the heat and simmer for 1 hour and 30 minutes without stirring.
4. Transfer the cooked wheat to a container, allow to cool completely and then place in the fridge until use. If there is any extra liquid, drain the excess before transferring it.
5. The day after, take half of the cooked wheat and blend it with the vegetable cream to be whipped, until you get a cream with a smooth consistency.
6. Prepare the ricotta cream by working the vegetable ricotta with the sugar, then add the grated zest of a lemon and an orange. Gently dissolve the tapioca in the dough (you can use a blender for a more homogeneous result).
7. Incorporate the creamy wheat mix, the cooked wheat and the candied fruit. Then mix everything evenly.
8. Preheat the oven to 160 ° C (320 ° F).
9. Roll out the shortcrust pastry to a thickness of about 4 mm, wrap the pastry on the rolling pin and place it on a 26 cm diameter pastiera mold. Cut off the excess dough from the edges and prick the bottom with a fork.
10. Place the dough in the freezer and, with the remaining scraps, make strips about 3 mm thick and about 1 cm wide, using the pizza wheel.
11. Take the pastry from the freezer and pour the filling inside, up to about 5-6 mm from the edge.
12. Place the first 3 strips on the pastiera starting from the center and at a distance of about 4 cm from each other, then complete with the remaining 3 by placing them diagonally to form diamonds.
13. Bake the vegan pastiera for about 1 hour and 30 minutes. Do the toothpick test (the dough must be compact), then increase the time to another 15-20 minutes if necessary. For the last 5 minutes, increase the temperature to 180 ° C (355 ° F) to caramelize the surface.
14. Leave the pastiera in the oven, semi-open, for about 30 minutes after the end of cooking, then allow to cool completely down to room temperature.
15. In order for the flavors to be perfect, wait at least 48 hours before enjoying it. Serve the vegan Neapolitan pastiera with a light dusting of icing sugar.
This pastiera can be kept for about 15 days in the refrigerator.
NOTES: If you use cooked wheat. Transfer 200 g of wheat to a saucepan, then add the water to the orange blossom *, 50 g of soy milk, vanilla and salt, and simmer over low heat for about 20-30 minutes. Then take half of the dough and blend it with the vegetable cream. Incorporate the two halves and let cool completely before using it in the cream.
* Orange blossom flavor:
– if you use the concentrated aroma (in vials), use ONLY 1 tablespoon (about 15 ml);
– if you use the diluted aroma (in a bottle of about 50-70 ml), use 4-6 spoons depending on your taste.
– if you use orange blossom water, follow the recipe doses.
For other vegan recipes for Easter/Spring, do not miss the followings:
– Fluffy Stuffed Courgette Brioche Bread
– Vegan Deviled Potatoes Two Ways
– Vegan Casatiello with Veggies
– Mini Quiche with Asparagus and Vegan Ham
– Courgette and Smoked Paprika Rolls
– Vegan Russian Salad
– Vegan Quiche Lorraine
– Vegan Smoked Salmon
– Light Coleslaw Salad
– Italian Style Potato Salad
4 comments
Delicious recipe! I loved pastiera before going vegan and was kinda missing it this year… this recipe did not disappoint! Everybody loved it 🙂 thanks!
Hi Sharon, I’m so, so pleased to hear that! Thank you so much for stepping by.
Have a great weekend!
I am in the United States and unfamiliar with some of the ingredients. Can you describe the‘vegetable cream’ for me, is it a replacement for cows cream?
Thank you for this recipe!!! Making the Easter pies was a pain in the neck before I became vegan.
I’ve struggled to continue my husband’s Italian tradition of Easter wheat pie when I could not get the wheat. Last year I held my breath and used pearled barley and he said that he actually preferred it to the wheat, but I wasn’t sure about replacing the eggs and ricotta from the traditional recipe so I didn’t. Now I have hope that I can satisfy both of our needs, his for comfort food and mine for ethical. Being able to use the Instant Pot for the barley is such a bonus, I hated babysitting the pot on the stove.
Hi Stephanie, I’m glad I could inspire you, and I do hope it will turn out great for both of you!
About the cream, you might know it as heavy cream. Some followers from the US suggested the brand Silk I believe. I haven’t tried it personally as I’m based in the UK, but I’ve heard good things, so it’s probabily worth trying 🙂
Let me know how it goes!! 😊