Ricotta And Chocolate Crostata

Crostata is a typical dessert from central Italy, although it is also widely consumed in Argentina. It is a simple (and perhaps somewhat rustic) cake with ricotta cheese and, depending on your preference, jam or chocolate.

This is one of the sweetest and most delicious recipes out there. In addition, it is prepared in a few steps and in a fairly short time (approximately an hour and a half).

It should be noted that the crostata can be made in a miniature version to enjoy as a snack or in its standard version to share in a special event : a birthday, a family reunion, a meal with friends, etc.

Ricotta and Chocolate Crostata # 1

Ingredients

For the coffee liqueur

• 250 cc of pure alcohol.
• 7 wells of espresso coffee.

• 2 and a half cups of powdered sugar (250 g).

For the mass

• A pinch of salt.
• 1 egg (60 g).
• 1 and a half cups of flour (150 g).
• 7 tablespoons grams of sugar (70 g).
• 1 stick of butter (approximately 115 g).

For the filling

• 1 egg (60 g).
• 1/2 cup of icing sugar (50 g).
• 4 cups grams of ricotta (400 g).
• 1 cup of semi-bitter chocolate (100 g).
• 1 tablespoon of vanilla essence (10 g).
• ½ tablespoon of almond essence (5 g).

Preparation

• The first thing is to make the base. To do this, cut the butter into cubes.
• Beat the egg lightly.
• In a bowl, mix the flour with the sugar, salt and butter. You should have a dough with a ‘sandy’ texture.
• Add the beaten egg and mix until smooth (you can add water if necessary).
• Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Mix the ricotta and the icing sugar (or icing), add the essences and the egg.
• Chop the chocolate into medium pieces.

• To assemble this cake, cover a previously greased mold or baking tray with the refrigerated dough.
• Pour in the cubed chocolate and then the ricotta mixture.
• Bake (preheated to 175 ° C) for 40 minutes.
• To prepare the coffee liqueur ( liquore di caffe ), in a saucepan heat the coffee wells with the sugar and mix well so that it dissolves.
• Add the alcohol and pour into a glass jar.
• As you will have to let it rest for a month, perhaps for this first opportunity you should buy it done.

Ricotta and Chocolate Crostata # 2

This is an easy recipe to prepare and that will make you travel to Italy, nonstop, in one bite. As it is not usually found in pastry shops, you will be wonderful when preparing it at home. The total preparation time is 1 hour and 20 minutes, half the time is preparation and the second half is cooking.

Ingredients (8 servings)

• 1 lemon
• 1 pinch of salt.
• 3 eggs (180 g).
• 5 cups of ricotta (500 g).
• 1 stick of butter (115 g).
• 5 tablespoons of rum (50 ml).
• 1 and a half cups of sugar (150 g).
• Chocolate -in nuggets or pieces- (120 g).
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder (5 g).
• 3 cups of pastry flour (300 g).

Preparation

• Pour the flour onto the counter or table (flat, clean surface).
• Make a hole in the middle and add two eggs, the yeast, 100 grams of sugar, the lemon zest, the butter cut into pieces and the salt.
• Knead well until you get a compact dough (maybe you can use a food processor, although it is better to do it with your hands).
• Form a ball with the dough, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for half an hour.

• Once the time has elapsed, roll out the cold dough with a rolling pin until it is 4 centimeters thick.
• Preheat the oven to 180 ° C.
• In a bowl, mix the ricotta with the rum, 80 grams of sugar, the chocolate chips and the egg.
• Grease a baking dish and pour the stretched dough into the base.
• Fill with the ricotta and chocolate cream.
• With the leftover dough, cut strips to place on top as if it were a trellis or grill.
• Bake for 40 minutes, until golden on all sides (remember not to open the oven for the first 20 minutes so that the dough rises correctly).
• Remove from the oven and let it cool on the counter before unmolding.

You can accompany your ricotta and chocolate crostata with a delicious coffee, infusion or tea.