Dark Chocolate and Ricotta Tart

This might be one of the best tarts I’ve ever had in my life.

The pastry crust is flaky, buttery, and still light somehow – without a hint of egg-flavor (which I’m not a fan of in pastries).

The filling is creamy, rich and not-too-sweet, with a slight fruity surprise in the form of fresh cherry preserves.

You can use this pastry crust recipe for just about any pastry you make – modifying it as needed. I could just eat it straight out of the oven with a dusting of powdered sugar on top in the form of little sugar cookies.

This is Part 3 of Cook Like an Italian: Torta di Ricotta alla Romana (or: Ricotta and Dark Chocolate Tart). This recipe comes courtesy of my cooking class through Convivio Rome during our recent trip to Italy. Click on the following links for Part 1 and Part 2 of this recipe series.

The husband and I devoured this tart as soon as it came out of the oven. It made me want to cook with ricotta in more sweet vs. savory dishes from now on!

The Ingredients

For the pastry:

• 150g (5.3oz) of butter
• 300g (10.5oz) of flour
• 150g (5.3oz) of sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• Pinch of salt to taste
• Lemon zest

For the filling:

• 500g (17.6oz) of ricotta
• 1 egg
• 100g (3.5oz) of sugar
• Lemon zest
• 1 drop of milk
• Coarsely chopped dark chocolate
• Fresh cherry preserves

The DirectionsStep 1: Separate your eggs. Create a “well” with the flour on a wooden cutting board. Add the butter, sugar, egg yolks and a pinch of salt to the middle of the “well”. Step 2: Grate fresh lemon zest into the “well”. Step 3: Knead the dough on the cutting board until it forms a smooth, tight ball. Then wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate for 30 min. Step 4: Mix ricotta until smooth, add sugar, flour, one egg, lemon zest and drop of milk if needed.Step 5: Chop your chocolate bar and add the chocolate chips to the ricotta mixture.
Step 6: Roll the pastry out between two sheets of parchment paper.Step 7: Lift the pastry (with the parchment) into the cake tin. One parchment paper should be at the bottom of the tin, then the pastry, and then you can lift the second parchment paper up. Press the pastry up to the sides of the tin. Step 8: Spread the cherry preserves on the bottom of the pastry. Step 9: Pour in the ricotta mixture, and if you have any extra pastry crust you can make little cookies out of it and top the ricotta mixture with the cookies. Step 10: Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown.Step 11: Cut into 16 slices, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve with a dark chocolate drizzle.This is definitely more of an “indulgent” vs. “healthy” recipe, but everyone needs a little indulgence once in a while And while this recipe makes 16 slices, even half of a slice is unbelievably satisfying, and is only 150 calories – which isn’t bad for dessert!Any way you enjoy it, eating this cake at the end of a long day with a glass of red wine or even a cup of hot coffee is absolute perfection. Print Dark Chocolate and Ricotta Tart

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Yield: 16 slices

Serving Size: 1 slice

Calories per serving: 304

Fat per serving: 15g

Nutritional Info Per Serving: 304 Calories, 15g Fat, 35mg Sodium, 36.8g Carbs, 2.4g Fiber, 20.6g Sugar, 7.3g Protein

Ingredients

Pastry
• 150g (5.3oz) of butter
• 300g (10.5oz) of flour
• 150g (5.3oz) of sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• Pinch of salt to taste
• Lemon zest
Filling
• 500g (17.6oz) of ricotta
• 1 egg
• 100g (3.5oz) of sugar
• Lemon zest
• 1 drop of milk
• Coarsely chopped dark chocolate
• Fresh cherry preserves

Directions

1. Separate your eggs. Create a "well" with the flour on a wooden cutting board. Add the butter, sugar, egg yolks and a pinch of salt to the middle of the "well".
2. Grate fresh lemon zest into the "well".
3. Knead the dough on the cutting board until it forms a smooth, tight ball. Then wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate for 30 min.
4. Mix ricotta until smooth, add sugar, flour, one egg, lemon zest and drop of milk if needed.
5. Chop your chocolate bar and add the chocolate chips to the ricotta mixture.
6. Roll the pastry out between two sheets of parchment paper.
7. Lift the pastry (with the parchment) into the cake tin. One parchment paper should be at the bottom of the tin, then the pastry, and then you can lift the second parchment paper up. Press the pastry up to the sides of the tin.
8. Spread the cherry preserves on the bottom of the pastry.
9. Pour in the ricotta mixture, and if you have any extra pastry crust you can make little cookies out of it and top the ricotta mixture with the cookies.
10. Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes until the crust is golden brown.
11. Cut into 16 slices, sprinkle with powdered sugar, and serve with a dark chocolate drizzle.

Notes

Recipe from Convivio Rome

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