Crostata Di Ricotta Italian Ricotta Cheese Pie |
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Prep Time: 0 Minutes Cook Time: 80 Minutes |
Ready In: 80 Minutes Servings: 12 |
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Having a Roman ancestry I remember my grandmother baking this. I was always watching her as she made it. This was given to me by her. It is a tridition to serve this at Easter. My own Recipe. Ingredients:
9” spring-form pan |
pasta frolla ( pastry crust ) |
2 cups all-purpose four |
12 tbls. butter or margarine ( 1 stick and 1/2 ) |
room temperature but not soft. |
4 egg yolks |
1/4 cup sugar |
3 tbls . dry marsala ( port ) wine |
1 tsp. freshly grated lemon peel |
1/2 tsp. salt |
ricotta filling |
5 cups ricotta cheese ( 21/2 pounds ) do not use part skim it contains water. |
1/2 cup sugar |
1 tbls. flour |
1/2 tsp. salt |
1 tsp. vanilla extract |
1 tsp. freshly grated orange peel |
4 egg yolks ( reserve 1 egg white ) |
1 tbls. white raisins previously soaked rinsed, drained, and diced. |
1 tbls. diced candied orange peel |
1 tbls. diced candied citron |
optional: 2 tbls. slivered blanched almonds or pine nuts |
1 egg white that was reserved mixed with 1 tbls. water |
Directions:
1. Pasta Frolla ( Pastry crust ):
2. In a large mixing bowl, make a well in the center of 2 cups of flour. Drop into it the butter ( margarine ), egg yolks, sugar, Marsala, lemon peel and salt. With your fingertips, mix the ingredients together, incorporating as much flour as you can. With the heels of your hands, work in the rest of the flour until the dough is smooth and can be gathered into a ball. Do not however knead the dough or work it any more than necessary. ( If you have an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, all of the ingredients can be placed in the bowl at once and mixed at low speed until they are just combined. ) The dough can be rolled out at once, but if it seems oily, refrigerate it for about 1 hour, or until it is firm but not hard.
3. Preheat the oven to 350º. Break off about 1/4 of the dough, dust lightly with flour and cover with plastic wrap: set aside in refrigerator. Reshape the rest of the dough into a ball and place on a lightly floured board or pastry cloth. With the heel of your hand flatten the ball into a disk about 1 inch thick. Dust a little flour over both sides of the disk to prevent the dough from sticking. Begin rolling it out starting from the center and rolling within an inch of the far edge. Gently lift the dough, turn clockwise, and roll out again from the center to the far edge. Repeat lifting, turning and rolling until the disk is about 1/8 inch thick and at least 11 inches across. If the dough sticks to the board or cloth while you are rolling it out, lift it gently with a wide metal spatula and sprinkle a little flour under it. Lightly butter the bottom and sides of a 9” spring-form pan. Then starting at the nearest edge of the circle lift the pastry and drape it over the rolling pin. Place the pin in the middle of the buttered pan and unfold the pastry over it leaving some slack in the center. Gently press the pastry into the bottom and around the sides of the pan taking care not to stretch it. Roll the pin over the rim of the pan pressing down hard to trim off the excess pastry around the top. Partially bake the pastry for 10 minutes set aside.
4. Unwrap the remaining pastry place it on a floured board or cloth flatten it with the heel of your hand and roll it into a rectangle about 12 inches long. With a pastry wheel or sharp knife cut the rectangle into long even strips about 1/2 inch wide.
5. The Ricotta Filling:
6. Combine the ricotta cheese with 1/2 cup of sugar,1 Tablespoon flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, vanilla, grated orange peel and egg yolks. Beat until they are thoroughly mixed. Stir in the raisins, the candied orange peel, and citron. Spoon
7. this filling into the partially baked pastry shell spreading it evenly with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the top with slivered almonds or pine nuts then weave or crisscross the pastry strips across the pie to make a lattice design. Brush the strips lightly with the egg-white-and-water mixture. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until the crust is golden and the filling is firm. Put a tray or oven liner the water from the ricotta will drip during the baking.
8. After baking:
9. Remove the pie from the oven and set it on a large jar or coffee can. Then once it is warm slide off the outside rim of the pan. Cool the pie on a wire cake rack leaving the bottom disk of the pan in place. If you would prefer to remove the disk before serving the pie wait until the pie is cool loosen the bottom crust with a wide metal spatula and carefully slide the pie off the disk onto a round serving plate.
10. Note: I made this as my grandmother taught me.
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