I think it might be safe to say that I have a strawberry obsession, or at least very well on my way to one…..sigh But Please friends, no intervention is necessary……..to quote Luther Ingram “If Loving you is wrong, I don’t want to be right” There I’ve said it and I’m not ashamed, I love strawberries, and I’m beginning to think that they love me too! Sigh…..those sweet and juicy little bites of heaven, picked at the peak of flavor, just begging to be made into something delicious…….you see strawberries just want to be loved, and to make us happy, what more could you ask of that little berry?
So once again thanks to La Cucina Italiana my strawberry obsession continues, and once again we turn to ricotta cheese to help provide the base for those lovely berries. This is not your typical ricotta cheesecake type crostata (aka tart), I would have to describe it as more of a custard than a cheesecake, and for good reason. The mix contains 4 egg yolks to a scant 1 1/4 cup of cheese. The crust is just a little sweet and oh so buttery, a perfect compliment to the custardy like texture of the filling, one might say a match made in heaven, actually Italy, but for me that’s close enough!
- 1 cup unbleached all purpose flour 150 g
- 3 Tbsp Sugar 45 g
- pinch of fine sea salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter * very cold and cut into small pieces 110 g, 1 stick
- 2 Tbsp Ice Water 30 g
- 1 cup Fresh whole milk ricotta 250 g, or bought
- 1/4 cup Mascarpone cheese * 60 g
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1/2 cup sugar 112 g
- 1/2 tsp vanilla* 2.5 ml
- finely grated zest of one lemon
- 3/4 pound of strawberries sliced, 340 g
- Confectioners sugar for dusting
- in a food processor pulse flour, sugar and salt 4 or 5 times
- add in cold butter pieces and pulse until flour resembles coarse meal
- add water and pulse
- dump dough into a bowl or on the counter and work it into a ball.
- form disc, wrap in cling wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight
- butter a 9 inch tart pan and dust with flour
- on a lightly floured surface roll out the dough to a 12 inch circle
- fit dough into tart pan pressing into the edges, and chill until firm (about 30 min)
- Preheat oven to 400 F (200 C)
- Line the tart pan with parchment with about an inch overhand and fill with pie weights (or dry beans)
- bake for 10 minutes or until golden brown
- remove parchment and weights, continue to bake until bottom of the crust is a pale golden color and edges are starting to brown (about 5 minutes more)
- Cool shell on wire rack
- reduce oven temp to 350 F(180 C)
- in your mixer beat ricotta and mascarpone until smooth
- add egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and lemon zest, mix until well combined
- spread filling in cooled tart shell and bake for 35 minutes, rotating tart once during baking
- Tart will be done when a tooth pick inserted in the center of the tart comes out clean
- cool completely on wire rack
- arrange sliced strawberries on the tart in concentric circles , dust the edges with confectioners sugar and remove from tart pan.
- Prepare to amaze your guests!
I know my posts have been a little on the short side, but as we enter these last few weeks of school time is becoming an issue, that and the fact that my body has really taken a beating this year, and with the end in sight my mind begins to loose focus…sigh that and getting another year older certainly hasn’t helped.
Thank you so much for stopping by today, and I do hope you’ve been enjoying my recent obsession!
This looks incredible! I love ricotta desserts, not too sweet.
It is alright to have a strawberry obsession…I have a bit of one myself! How can you not when creating desserts like this?! Love this tart, it sounds amazing with the creamy layer underneath and sweet berries on top! Lovely as well :)!
I’m a bit behind…I thought your obsession was with squash blossom?! 😀 Strawberries are good too, they are so versatile in many ways! What a piece of work this is, such a beauty too!
Hi Lydnsey
squash blossoms certainly are an obsession of mine, but since they won’t be out for another month or two, I thought I would compensate by obsessing on strawberries!
Dennis
Chef…nothing wrong in loving strawberry…I love cranberry like crazy and have them stashed in the freezer 🙂 Please give me a slice and I wish IT can have this advancement…grab from the screen and have the real thing ! :p ….I will surely grab the whole crostata and not leaving any for your other readers :p oooops how selfish that is…just kidding LOL!
Have a nice day,
Elin
Oh, my… This one is just calling my name!
soooooooooooo fabulous
You and I share a love of Italian desserts, that’s for sure 🙂 This one is gorgeous and looks absolutely delicious. I love ricotta in desserts… I
Gorgeous, I love strawberries with ricotta and I have the same strawberry obsession myself!
This is stunning! I’m with you on the strawberry obsession!!!
“There’s nothing wrong w/ that.” LOL I am also addicted to strawberries, and I think there are worse addictions to be had!
This looks fantastic – I love the subtle sweetness of ricotta, and this looks like a wonderfully refreshing summer dessert.
Looks devine. Adding this to my list of things to make!
Your strawberries look incredible! The colors in that first photo are gorgeous.
Looks divine! My cravings for strawberry treats seem to be at its highest during Spring. Your post is just in time. =) Thanks!
It’s always nice to see fresh, in season ingredients used magnificently. I’d have a bite of this, and just may have to make it with my fruit obsession- mangos! You’re a recent find that I’m enjoying 😉
hi Lynn!
it would be wonderful with mangoes or peaches..yumm Thanks for stopping by and glad to hear you’re enjoying my posts!
Dennis
Chef!! This looks amazing! What a lovely way to use strawberries. I am sure that this combination is just irresistible! Gorgeous too
This looks beautiful! I’ve never used ricotta in dessert nor marscapone at all! I really need to broaden my horizons!
I’ve been thinking about what I want to eat on Mother’s Day and I think this just made the list!
We JUST got strawberries at the farmers market! This would be perfect to make with them!
Strawberries are one of my favorites too – I look forward to strawberry season more than any other!
Thank you for letting me know, My friend Jean from Lemons and Anchovies made those madeleines for a guest post, I will let her know!
this is just lovely. lovely, lovely, lovely.
I’m not even kidding, just the sound of this made my mouth salivate! A strawberry and ricotta crostata mmmmm!! This looks too good to be true 🙂 I love ricotta cheese with fruit, they pair so wonderfully together. And boy does that crust does look super buttery and flaky…I’m sure I could eat just that alone 🙂 This is a beautiful dessert, thank you for sharing it.
Obsess away! Your strawberry posts have us drooling and waiting, waiting, waiting for our local berries to arrive.
Dennis, who of us can help having a strawberry obsession when spring comes! I’ve certainly posted my fair share of strawberry recipes over the last three springs. And doesn’t everything just look better made in a tart pan?!
Your first paragraph made me smile, your second paragraph made me hungry, and your photos made me a little obsessed with strawberries, too! Fun, tasty post!
We can have many gastronomic obsessions. It’s just called “love for food”. When fall comes, I adore cranberries, in spring time I cannot wait for strawberries to ripen, in midsummer I crave for blueberries. And what is remarkable about this recipe, all these fruity obsessions could be applied here. 🙂
Thank you for the inspiration!
I completely sympathize with a strawberry obsession, I’m in the same boat 🙂 I made another one of your strawberry cakes before, the mascarpone cheesecake, ant it was absolutely delicious! Now I will have to try this one :-).
I have not been to your site as much I would have liked lately, because I was very busy building a website for food bloggers. And now that website is finally live, as of Monday. And I would like to invite you to contribute some of your wonderful posts.
It’s called RecipeNewZ (with Z) – http://recipenewz.com.
It’s a photo based recipe sharing community. The idea is simple: all food bloggers are welcome, all recipe photographs are published within minutes of submission. And, of course, the images link back to the author’s site.
I hope you get a chance to visit and to share some of your delicious posts with our viewers. It would be an honor and a pleasure to have you on board 🙂
Chef, this looks yummy, love to try these kind of food items but in my area it is not possible i would like to try it, thanks for the recipe……….. my blog is all about south indian recipes.
Thank you for such a wonderful recipe. I made this strawberry delight yesterday for my husband’s grandfather’s 89th birthday (one of many delights on offer) and it was polished off by guests. Making it again for my mother’s 60th this Saturday given it’s absolute delectable perfection!
Thank you so much for letting me know that everyone enjoyed the crostata! I hope it goes as well at your mothers party!
I wish I could make your strawberry ricotta crostata now. No strawberries in the markets but a whole lots of mangoes falling of the branches. mhm foodie dream ^.^