• The pizza piena is pure, simple perfection – each mouthful serves as a celebration of Italian flavour.

    Build your base: basic pizza dough

    Pizza piena Napoletana

    Serves: 10
    Total Time: 2 hrs

    Ingredients

    • 18 free-range eggs
    • 1 tbsp freshly ground black pepper
    • 400g home-made/store-bought standard pizza dough, rolled out thinly into 2 discs
    • 650g mozzarella, sliced
    • 250g Parmesan, grated
    • 300g Parma ham, diced
    • beaten egg, to brush

    Instructions

    1

    Preheat the oven to 200˚C. Beat the eggs well and add the freshly ground black pepper.

    2

    Grease and line the sides and base of a 25cm springform tin. Line with 1 disc of pizza dough to form a pie crust on the base and sides.

    3

    Crumble a mixture of the cheeses over the base and sprinkle with the diced Parma ham.

    4

    Spoon over a large ladleful of the beaten egg mixture and repeat until the springform tin is filled to the brim with the different layers.

    5

    Use the second thin pizza base to cover the top of the springform tin, pinching the sides and top together to enclose. Brush the lid with a little beaten egg and bake in the preheated oven until the filling has set, about 1 hour 20 minutes.

    6

    Allow to cool a little and serve the pizza piena in generous slices.

    Notes

    There is no salt in the filling – the meat and cheeses are salty enough.

    ALSO SEE: Loaded vegetable pita pizza

    Loaded vegetable pita pizza