Sicilian Ricotta Pie Recipes

Steps:

• Place the ricotta into a fine mesh sieve and nestle this over a bowl, place into the refrigerator overnight to allow the excess moisture to drain out before proceeding with the cassata recipe.
• Place the ricotta into the bowl of a mixer and beat with the paddle attachment until the curds smooth out. Mix the drained and beaten ricotta with 1 cup powdered sugar, vanilla extract, cinnamon, chocolate chips and half the candied fruit. Set aside.
• Lightly oil a 10-inch springform pan with canola oil. Slice the sponge cake very thinly so that the springform may be lined with it in an even layer. Line the sides and bottom of the pan with the sponge cake. Pour the ricotta filling into the cake-lined pan. Place a final layer of cake over the ricotta filling; this now creates the bottom to the cassata. Before serving, the cassata will be inverted onto this cake bottom. Refrigerate the cassata overnight to firm the filling.
• Invert the springform pan on a wide platter. Open the hinge and remove the springform sides and bottom.
• The cassata may now be finished by either covering with a heavy coating of the remaining powdered sugar or may be coated with a thin layer of green marzipan. Either way, the remaining candied fruits should be used to decorate the finished cassata. Slice thinly and serve.

Steps:

• Beat the 12 eggs, 2 cups sugar and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Stir in the ricotta cheese and the chocolate chips, if using (see Cook's Note). Set aside.
• Combine the flour, baking powder, and 1 cup sugar together. Cut in 1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in 4 beaten eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Divide dough into 4 balls, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease two deep-dish pie plates.
• Roll out 2 of the balls to fit into the pie pans. Do not make the crust too thick, as it will expand during cooking. Do not flute the edges of the dough. Roll out the other 2 balls of dough and cut each into 8 narrow strips for the top of the crust. (Alternately, you can use cookie cutters and place the cutouts on the top of the pies.)
• Pour the ricotta filling evenly into the pie crusts. Top each pie with 8 narrow strips of dough or cookie cut-outs. Brush top of pie with milk for shine, if desired. Place foil on the edge of crust.
• Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 30 minutes; remove foil. Rotate pies on the rack so they will bake evenly. Continue to bake until a knife inserted in the center of each pie comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes more. Cool completely on wire racks. Refrigerate until serving.

Steps:

• For the Tart Dough: This recipe works best with very cold butter. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes. Since butter softens rapidly with handling, return the cubes to the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes while you set up the food processor and gather the dry ingredients. Place the flour, sugar, and kosher salt, in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse on/off a few times to combine. Add the butter, tossing quickly with a spatula to coat each cube with flour. This prevents the butter cubes from adhering together and helps them to break apart and combine more evenly with the flour. Pulse on and off 15 times until the butter particles are the size of small peas. With the motor running, add the ice water all at once through the feed tube. Process for about 10 seconds, stopping the machine before the dough becomes a solid mass. Turn the contents of the bowl onto a sheet of aluminum foil, pressing any loose particles into the mass of dough. Roughly form the dough into a 7-inch disk. Cover the dough completely with aluminum foil and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until ready to use. The dough may be refrigerated up to 2 days or frozen for up to 2 weeks. Let dough rest in refrigerator until needed.
• For the Tart: Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Roll out each portion of dough on a floured surface into 9-inch free form circles, about 3/8-inch thick, and transfer to baking sheets. Cover and chill the dough while you prepare the filling. Mix the ricotta, egg yolks, tangerine peel, sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir with a rubber spatula until well combined. Scatter the chopped dates over the surface of the tart shell leaving a 1 1/2-inch border around the outside edge. Spoon the filling over the dates and raise the dough border to enclose the sides of the tart. Press down on the dough where if forms pleats to secure. Bake the tart for 15 to 18 minutes, in preheated 450 degrees, until the crust is golden and the filling is just set. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes, dust with confectioners' sugar and serve warm.

Steps:

• In a saucepan, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Add rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
• Place raisins in a small saucepan and cover with boiling water. Cook over low heat or 10 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
• To Make Dough: In a medium bowl or in a food processor, combine flour and 1/3 cup superfine sugar. Cut in butter or pulse in processor until mixture looks like cornmeal. Mix in 1 egg yolk. Stir in ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, until mixture holds together when you squeeze it. Wrap with plastic wrap and let rest in refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
• In a medium saucepan, combine cooked rice, milk, orange zest and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until mixture is creamy and thick. Remove from heat. Whisk 3 egg yolks with 1/3 cup sugar in a large bowl. Gradually add hot rice mixture, about a cup at a time, whisking constantly. Stir in ricotta cheese, cooked raisins and cinnamon. Add vanilla and orange flower water. Let mixture cool to room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Roll out 3/4 of the pastry dough into an 11-inch circle and line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springform pan. Cover lightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Roll out remaining dough into a 10-inch circle and cut into lattice strips.
• In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whites into the batter to lighten it, then quickly fold in remaining whites until no streaks remain.
• Pour filling into dough-lined pan. Criss-cross the lattice strips over the filling. Seal the lattice strips to the bottom pastry edge.
• Bake in preheated oven for an hour, or until pastry is golden brown. Cool at room temperature for about 4 hours, then keep refrigerated.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Set rack in the middle of the oven. Butter and flour a 9 1/2 inch springform pan, and tap out excess flour.
• Place the ricotta in a large mixing bowl, and stir it as smooth as possible with a rubber spatula. Stir the sugar and flour together thoroughly into the ricotta. Stir in the eggs 1 at a time. Blend in the vanilla, cinnamon, orange zest, and salt. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours, until a light golden color. Make sure the center is fairly firm, and the point of a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack. It will sink slightly as it cools. Cover, and chill till serving time.

Steps:

• Line a large colander or sieve with 4 layers of cheesecloth. Set aside.
• Heat milk, buttermilk, heavy cream, and salt in a large, heavy, nonreactive saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally for the first 10 minutes. Continue heating, without stirring, until the temperature reaches 190 degrees F. Remove from heat and let stand for 1 hour. The mixture will be separated into white curds and clear whey.
• Using a slotted spoon, ladle approximately 1/4 of the curds into the cheesecloth-lined colander. Gather up the corners of the top cheesecloth and secure closed with a zip tie. Repeat with the rest of the curds, cheesecloth, and zip ties. Use the last zip tie to thread all of the cheeses together. Suspend the cheeses over a large wooden spoon over a large bowl, and let drain for 2 hours.
• Place the four cheeses, still in cloth, in a bowl in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, cut zip ties, and transfer cheese to an airtight container.