Butternut Squash Ricotta Tart With Puff Pastry

squash torte with ricotta

Butternut squash is hands down one of my favorite veggies. When fall comes around I get excited to see it popping up in all the markets. It’s so versatile and you can make so many different meals using it.

One way I like using it is in a savory tart like this one with a cheesy spinach and ricotta base, the flavors compliment each other so well which brings out the sweetness of the squash.

butternut squash

Now you don’t actually have to cut the squash like I did, you can just cube it up, but if you want to fancy it up a bit and give it a showstopper look, do what I did.

Cut the squash right above the seed section, peel the skin off and scoop out the seeds, now cut side down make thin slices. A little more time consuming but it does give it a pretty look.

squash tart

This time I used puff pastry but in the past I’ve used phyllo and even a piecrust as the crust foundation.

savory tart

I have to say store-bought puff pastry is really time saver, you just defrost and it’s ready to go, and it always turns out nice and crispy!

squash and ricotta

The ricotta mixture is flavored with garlic, grated fontina and pecorino cheese and a good handful of fresh chopped spinach.

savory tart with salad

Serve this with a salad of your choice and you have a great lunch, brunch, light dinner or meatless meal, it’s fantastic and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

Butternut Squash Ricotta Tart With Puff Pastry
 
A savory tart with butternut squash and creamy ricotta cheese, the perfect combination with crispy puff pastry as the foundation.
Author:
Ingredients
  • butternut squash, cut above the seeds, then peeled with seeds scooped out and sliced thin, or just cut in cubes
  • 1 sheet of store-bought puff pastry, defrosted according to directions
  • 2½ cups of ricotta, drained well
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 large garlic clove, crushed
  • ¾ cups of grated pecorino or parmesan, plus a little extra
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • olive oil
  • 1 cup of grated fontina cheese or grated mozzarella
  • 1 handful of chopped fresh spinach
  • a sprig of thyme for garnish
Instructions
  1. Pre-heat oven to 400.
  2. After you slice the squash, place on a parchment lined and olive oiled sheet pan, and also lightly drizzle some olive oil on top. Roast at 400 until just softened, not browned ,about 5 or 6 minutes. Check because ovens vary.Then cool down.
  3. Mix up the filling in one bowl, the ricotta, eggs, garlic, grated pecorino or parmesan, shredded fontina or mozzarella and chopped spinach. Mix well.
  4. On another sheet pan place parchment paper and the puff pastry sheet.
  5. Roll the puff pastry with a rolling pin til it takes. the shape of a rectangle and not a square.
  6. Lightly score a border around the entire edge using a paring knife, then prick the surface inside the border all over with a fork.
  7. Spread the ricotta mixture all over the inside surface but not the border.
  8. Arrange and layer the butternut squash on top of the ricotta mixture.
  9. Brush some olive oil on the border adding a little pepper and grated cheese.
  10. A finishing touch of grated cheese on top of the squash a pinch of salt and pepper and quick drizzle of olive oil all over, then add a few thyme leaves.
  11. Bake at 400 for around 25 to 30 minutes. Check your oven, the bottom of your puff pastry should be nice and crispy golden and the ricotta will be set.

 

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Whipped Ricotta Berry Tart

This is one of those desserts that is just so satisfying, its light, not to sweet, it uses fresh berries in season. There’s lemon and vanilla flavor in the background and it’s all surrounded by crunchy phyllo dough. It’s a whipped ricotta tart and you don’t even need to pull out your mixer!

berry ricotta tart

I love making tarts with ricotta and love using phyllo, which by the way is VERY forgiving. Of course this would be just as delicious if you make or buy your own pie crust and use that, but you’ll need to blind bake that as well. You can also mix up the berries you use, I did sliced strawberries, blackberries and blueberries.

I wouldn’t do too many strawberries they’re not as sturdy as the other ones I mentioned, they tend to soften the tart up much quicker, but if you’re eating it right away that won’t matter.

berry ricotta slice

The hardest part will be waiting for it to cool down so you can have a slice with some coffee, don’t forget to sprinkle it with a nice shower of powdered sugar! With Mother’s day around the corner this just might be one to make for that special mom in your life.

Whipped Ricotta Berry Tart
 
A berry ricotta tart, not too sweet but oh so delicious with a nice crunchy phyllo crust.
Author:
Ingredients
  • ½ stick of unsalted butter, melted
  • 8 sheets of phyllo dough
  • tart pan with removable bottom, I used an 11 x 8 rectangle pan
  • FILLING:
  • 2 cups whole milk ricotta, make sure it's well drained if it's from a deli, or use a good one from a grocery in the cheese section
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup of sugar
  • ¼ cup of heavy cream
  • the zest of 1 lemon
  • ½ teaspoon lemon extract
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • a mix of berries, I don't measure those, I just fill in and cover the top of the tart to my liking
  • powder sugar for sprinkling the tart when cooled
Instructions
  1. Heat your oven to 350F, you're going to pre-bake the phyllo for 15 minutes.
  2. With the melted butter, brush your tart pan all over.
  3. Working fast,add 1 sheet of phyllo at a time brushing it all over with the melted butter, repeat brushing the butter on to all the rest of the phyllo sheets.
  4. You're going to layer them on top of each other, squishing them around the sides of the pan, don't worry if they rip, no one will know, phyllo is very for giving.
  5. Put the tart pan onto a cookie sheet for easy in and out of the oven and place into your pre-heated oven for 15 minutes.
  6. If it puffs up when you take it out just press it down with the back of a spoon, set it aside, now make your filling.
  7. Raise the oven temp to 375F now.
  8. In a medium size bowl whisk together the ricotta, eggs, heavy cream, sugar, zest and extracts til nice and smooth.
  9. Pour the filling on top of the pre-baked phyllo dough.
  10. Sprinkle your berries all around filling in and covering the top of the ricotta mixture.
  11. Bake for another 30- 45 minutes, remember it all depends on your oven, everyone is different and also if the ricotta has a lot of moisture and is not drained properly, that could affect the cooking time as well, I didn't use the deli kind.
  12. Take the tip of a knife after 30 minutes and see if it comes out pretty clean in the center, if not check every 5 more minutes.
  13. Let the tart cool down before you slice into it then sprinkle powder sugar all over it.
  14. Enjoy this creamy, crunchy berry bite!

 

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Chocolate Ricotta Tart

First of all I’d like to wish all the mothers out there a very Happy Mother’s Day! To celebrate I thought I’d share something sweet with you today. This is a tart made with rich dark chocolate, ricotta, rum, grated orange rind and walnuts, it’s absolutely wonderful! Just put on a pot of coffee or your favorite espresso and you’re all set!

I was fortunate to be the winner of this awesome bar of rich dark Jacques Torres chocolate over by my friend Pat’s blog, Mille Fiori Favoriti. Pat has lived in New York City her entire life. If you want to visit NYC I highly recommend you check out her blog, she’ll make you want to pack your bags ASAP!

 

Jacques Torres known as “Mr Chocolate” is ranked as one of the top pastry chefs of the world, so I knew I was in for a real treat! The second I opened up the bar and unraveled the paper the smell was so intoxicating! Oh, and there’s a reason why it’s called a Big Daddy Bar, this thing was huge!

I saw this poster in a chocolate shop and thought it was very appropriate for this post.

Here’s the recipe!

 

The filling consists of, 4 1/2 oz of semisweet dark chocolate, broken into pieces, 1 cup ricotta cheese, 1/3 cup confectioners sugar, 2 tbsp dark rum, finely grated rind of half an orange, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts.

 

If you’re adventurous you can make your own double pie crust or just buy a good quality one like I did.

 

Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of hot water. Mix together the ricotta, confectioners sugar, grated orange rind, rum, vanilla and walnuts, mixing evenly. Roll out dough to fit into a 9″ tart pan with removable bottom. Spoon the ricotta mixture evenly into the pastry, it will be thick, don’t worry. Roll the remaining dough and cut into strips to form a lattice top. Place on a baking sheet in a preheated 350F oven for 35-40 minutes, until firm and golden.
ENJOY!

 

Recipe adapted from Frame by Frame Italian

 

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Pears for Dessert, 3 Ways!

Here’s a few simple desserts using fresh pears which I happen to have an abundance of!
Marsala Baked Pears, doesn’t that sound good to you? Believe me when I tell you, it was!

The flavor is out of this world because what happens here is while the pears are baking their continually soaking up butter and Marsala to the point where they become beautifully caramelized, when finished and still warm they become the perfect companion to ice cream,
whipped cream, or luscious mascarpone! You can garnish with something crunchy like nuts or crumbled biscotti, need I say more?

 

Not really a recipe, here’s what you do;
Peel and slice pears lengthwise, place them in a baking dish, pour in sweet Marsala wine half way up the side of the pears, place dabs of butter all around and sprinkle wine with sugar or you can even use honey just to sweeten everything up a bit. Place in a 350F oven for around a good hour basting them often, you’ll know their done when the liquid becomes caramelized.
Pear and Ricotta Tart, This is a standard recipe I use whenever I want to bake a fruit of any sort with ricotta. I use a 9″ tart pan with a removable bottom then place a good pre made pie dough into the bottom, ( I told you it was simple!) of course you can make your own if you like. To insure the dough being crusty and cooked on the bottom I like to blind bake the dough for a five minutes in a 425F oven by placing a piece of parchment paper on top and then adding some beans or pie weights, then remove, take off the weights and reduce oven to 375F.
For the filling;
1lb ricotta cheese
6 0r 7 ripe pear halves, sliced lengthwise and cored
2 eggs
1/4 cup sugar
Fresh orange zest or 1 heaping tablespoon of apricot preserves
Pinch of cinnamon

Mix everything together in a bowl until well blended, (except the pears of course). Place filling into pie shell and position pears all around. ( optional, sprinkle and swirl more cinnamon on top) Bake at 375F for around 30 minutes. While still warm brush apricot preserves on top of pears. Let it cool down while you put on a pot of espresso!

And last but not least, Chocolate Ricotta Filled Pears. Turning creamy white ricotta into chocolate is so quick using cocoa powder and then pairing it with orange is a match made in heaven! I can’t wait to try this with strawberries, because we all know how good chocolate and strawberries are!
Poach 3 whole peeled pears in 3 cups of water and 1/4 cup of orange juice, cook around 10 minutes in a covered pan , when pears are tender remove and cool down.When cooled, slice them lengthwise and remove cores.
Ricotta Filling:
1 cup ricotta
1/3 cup of powdered sugar
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
Mini chocolate chips, ( as many as you like)
Combine everything into a bowl then spoon the mixture into the center of the pears. Garnish with orange zest and more chocolate chips.
Recipe adapted from BHG
Note: For a real quickie, use purchased bottled pears, I tried it, it’s good too!
Buon Appetito!

 

 

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Apple Wrapped Ricotta Tarts

The other day while I was photo grazing over at TasteSpotting, I came across Confessions of a Tart, she had just posted apple and ricotta tartlets. What caught my eye was that instead of a pastry crust, she used sliced apples. What a great idea! A dessert I don’t have to feel guilty about eating, and besides that, it just sounded so good to me. I knew I was going to make this.

I wanted to change mine up a bit, so I decided to add some rum soaked golden raisins to the ricotta mixture, which turned out adding great flavor to the ricotta. Basically you slice apples very thin, and then you arrange them in overlapping circles inside muffin cups. Irene had a great visual on this so take a look at her photo here. This takes a little time and patience, and as you can see from my little tart above, my apple layering didn’t turn out nearly as pretty as Irene’s.

So I decided to pull out my little 8″ spring form pan, butter up the sides and bottom and then layered my apples around the bottom and along the side. As soon as I spread the ricotta mixture down it served as a wall and I added more apple slices in layers along the side. This was way easier for me to handle, and I think the result turned out nice. What do you think?

The only thing I would suggest if you use a spring form pan, is to wrap tin foil around the bottom and lower sides so that none of the juice from the apple slices will seep through and smoke up your oven.


Here’s the ingredients:
This recipe makes 8 tartlets, but you can double or triple the recipe, if you want to make more than 8, or if you want to use a spring form pan.
**Rum soaked golden raisins.
**4 firm apples, peeled, cut, cored and sliced thin for layering.
**8oz. of ricotta cheese.
**4T of sugar.
**1 egg.
Drain your raisins and sprinkle on top of your ricotta mixture.

Bake 350F for 30-35 minutes until set and puffed. If you’re making the tartlets let them cool and remove them gently with a tablespoon, I found that worked well. Taste great warm or cold!

We throughly enjoyed ever bite of this!
Buon Appetito!!
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LIMONCELLO RICOTTA TART

Tucked away in my freezer is this wonderful bottle of Limoncello that we bought on our trip to Italy. Every time I look at it I get reminded of the great time we had there. I try to savor every drop of it and only use it for special things. Yes, I could buy a bottle of Limoncello at my neighborhood liquor store at any time, but it just won’t be as “special”. And so, I pulled it out to make my Ricotta Tart, and just that little hint of Limoncello puts it over the top!!!

INGREDIENTS

2lb’s good ricotta, drained

1/2 cup of sugar

Zest of a whole lemon

3 lrg eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon

1/2 cup of shaved semi-sweet chocolate

1 1/2 Tbl cake flour

2 Tbl’s or “More” of Limoncello liqueur ( according to your taste)

Preheat oven to 375. Lightly grease a 9 or 10 in. tart pan, and fill it with your favorite pastry dough.
Mix together in a large bowl the sugar into the ricotta, add your zest, cinnamon, and then fold in your shaved chocolate. **** IMPORTANT POINT HERE!!! At this point, before the eggs are added, I would take a spoon and taste your ricotta filling to see if all the flavors are strong enough to your liking. If not, you can add a little more zest, cinnamon, or Limoncello.
Next, add your eggs one at a time, along with the cake flour.

Now take your leftover dough and cut into strips to make a basket weave top, brush top of the dough strips with milk, this will make it golden brown.
Bake for about 55min’s or until toothpick comes out clean and golden on top
.
Buon Appetito!!!

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