This decadent, savoury and impressive torta salata is so easy to make and will leave your meals much more exciting. I gathers the most delicious combinations of all: spinach and bacon.

If you are looking for a recipe to impress your guests or a nice lunch option for a Sunday with family you found it! This bacon and spinach tart is so delicious that I can never get enough of it. The good part is that portions are well served, so you can eat as much as your heart tells you to.

This tart is so versatile that you can make with many other ingredients. My suggestion is to keep the eggs and mozzarella cheese as a base, but play with other greens and meats. Here are some ideas:

Ham
Pancetta
Kale
Spring greens
Provolone cheese
Zucchini and potatoes
Ricotta and Spinach

Now let’s go make this delicious torta salata?

Cooking Time

Cooking: 50 minutes
Preparation: 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour

Servings

4 servings

Equipment

9” Pie dish
Sieve
Parchment paper
Baking beans

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Ingredients list

For the tart dough

1 homemade or store-bought pie dough

For the filling

½ lb spinach, I used fresh but frozen also works
2 garlic cloves, minced
3.5 oz or ½ cup unsmoked bacon, chopped
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup grana padano hard cheese, grated
4 medium eggs
¼ cup butter, melted
5 oz or ⅔ cup mozzarella cheese, grated
Salt and black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

How to make Torta Salata

Preheat the oven to 356ºF/180ºC.
Line a 9’’ or 24 cm tart tin or pie dish, with parchment paper.
Remove the pie pastry from the fridge and unroll the dough over the pie dish. Press the bottom and sides with your fingers to cover and form the pie shape. Gently push the pastry over the edges of the pan, prick the base with a fork, line another parchment paper, add baking beans (alternatively beans or rice) and blind bake the pie crust for 10 minutes until the sides turned golden. Remove carefully the beans and parchment paper and bake for extra 5 minutes to golden the base. Reserve the tart in the tart tin.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add the bacon and fry until crispy for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Transfer to a plate with kitchen paper and remove the extra fat in the skillet. Don’t wash it, just pour the excess out.
On the same skillet, heat it again over medium heat, add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant, add the spinach and cook until wilted, for about 5 minutes. Reserve to cool, squeeze the extra water by gently pressing the spinach over a sieve, roughly chop the spinach and reserve.
In a medium bowl, mix the eggs, butter, mozzarella, salt and black pepper to taste.
Spread half of the spinach, and half of the bacon, and pour the egg mixture over. Spread the remaining spinach and bacon and top sprinkling the hard cheese on top. Bake for an extra 25 to 30 minutes until cooked through.
Remove from the oven, allow to cool, sprinkle parsley, cut and serve.

fried bacon on skillet for torta salata — 2

fried garlic on a skillet for torta salata — 3

wilted spinach on skillet for torta salata — 4

eggs, cheese, butter and pepper on a bowl for torta salata — 5

pouring cheese mixture over spinach and bacon — 8

Notes

Pie pastry: Also known as brisè pastry, or shortcrust pastry is a prepared pastry for savoury tarts and pies. You can prepare in advance or buy beforehand.

Blind baking: It’s essential to make this and other pie recipes, don’t skip this part.

Bacon: Can substitute for pancetta or omit for a vegetarian option.

Storage

Keep the spinach and bacon Italian tart covered in the fridge for up to 2 days. Suitable for home freezing.

FAQs

What to serve torta salata with

You can serve spinach and cheese tart as a delicious meal on its own as a main course, or in a celebration as a side dish.

Torta Salata Vegetariana

To make it vegetarian, just omit the bacon from this recipe.

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