berries Archives - Proud Italian Cook

Lemon Blueberry Summer Tart

When I think of summer I think of all the different berries that are in abundance right now and this lemon blueberry dessert is the perfect dessert to make this time a year. This summer tart is light, fruity, refreshing and quite simple to make.

Picture a crisp tart crust filled with the berries of your choice, for this tart I used primarily blueberries but I also added in some blackberries that I had. You can also use raspberries or strawberries as well to create your tart.

What I love about this tart is how it’s cooked and comes together, there’s a layer of berries that gets cooked right on top of the tart crust until it gets nice and bubbly, then when it’s done you shut the oven off and scatter fresh berries all over the top, it’s the best of both worlds!

You can serve this for all your summer affairs, summer cookouts, graduations, birthdays, bridal and baby showers or just for a delicious dessert to enjoy relaxing on your patio, you get the idea.

Enjoy!

Lemon Blueberry Summer Tart

This recipe is adapted from an old issue of Woman's Day magazine from the early 2000's. Replacing the almond flavor with lemon gives it a bright summery twist.

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1 cup flour
2 Tbl. flour
⅔ cup granulated sugar
2 Tbl. granulated sugar
½ t. salt
1 stick, unsalted butter
1 Tbl. white vinegar
5 cups of blueberries
heaping tablespoon of lemon zest
½ t. lemon extract
confectioner's sugar

Instructions

Heat oven to 375F. Coat a 9-in. round or square tart pan with removable bottom with nonstick spray.
Pulse 1 cup flour, 2 TBL sugar and the salt in a food processor until blended. Add butter and pulse til crumbs form. Sprinkle with vinegar, pulse til blended. Turn out dough and bring together with fingers.
Press dough into bottom of tart pan. Top with 3 cups of the berries.
NOTE: Feel free to make it with a good quality store-bought pie dough, I've done it and it turns out just as delicious.
Mix remaining 2 Tbl. flour, ⅔ cup sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl and evenly sprinkle over berries and drizzle the lemon extract right over the berries.
bake tart 50 - 60 minutes until bubbly.
Remove tart from oven and top with remaining 2 cups of blueberries.
Cool on a wire rack, when cooled sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve at room temperature.

Lemony Sweet Whipped Ricotta with Fresh Berries

If. you’re looking for a quick, no bake very impressive dessert, this is the one for you. Sweet whipped ricotta with fresh berries. When ricotta is whipped, by means of a food processor it becomes very creamy and velvety and takes on a whole new life and then layered with fresh berries it becomes the perfect dessert.

You can sweeten it up with different sugars, zests, extracts and juices and even a little liquor if you like.

A light and healthy dessert using fresh berries of your choice, it’s low in carbs and so quick to make.

You’ll want to use good quality whole milk ricotta and if you get it from a deli it’s usually holding on to some liquid and if that’s the case you’ll want to drain it overnight in the fridge with some cheesecloth or a fine strainer over a bowl, at least for a couple of hours then you’ll be good to go.

I used a little limoncello and lemon zest for mine but lemon extract or juice plus zest is wonderful as well.

Don’t be afraid to give it a good processing, up to five minutes because you want that creamy, velvety texture.

You can make your sweet whipped ricotta a few hours ahead and store it in the fridge until dessert time

You can serve it parfait style with multiple layers or simply the way I did, I highly suggest adding some nuts to top it off. Enjoy this simple, elegant light dessert!

5.0 from 1 reviews

Lemony Sweet Whipped Ricotta with Fresh Berries

Transform ricotta into a super velvety texture by whipping it in a food processor.

Author: Marie

Ingredients

1 lb. whole milk ricotta, drained of liquid if "wet" by using a cheese cloth or fine strainer overnight in the fridge
⅓ cup of sugar, either powdered or regular
Zest of a lemon
Additional flavors ( at this point taste for sweetness and lemon flavor, you can add some lemon juice or a little lemon extract,( start out small) or even limoncello liquor, start with a small amount and taste to your liking.
Assorted mixed fresh berries
nuts for garnish

Instructions

Add the drained ricotta into the bowl of a food processor and process till velvety smooth, could be up to 5 minutes.
Add the sugar, zest, and any flavorings, then taste to your liking. Feel free to sub in orange zest and juice if you prefer that over lemon.
Process until all the flavors are all mixed together.
Layer with fresh berries and nuts.
You can make this a few hours in advance and keep in the fridge until dessert time.