It’s not particularly cheap, but it is easy to make. It features a custard like no other you’ve tasted. And it’s cradled lovingly in a sweet, short crust you’ve never made before… Ricotta Pie has come down through many generations. Now, it’s your turn!
Ricotta Pie gets overlooked, even by the best Italian cooks, when you ask them to recommend a rally good Italian dish to make. That may be because it’s so familiar that it fades into the hazy back-ground of their overall memory picture. They take it for granted…
Time for a renaissance!
I say it’s time to bring back Ricotta Pie with lights flashing and sirens blaring. If we do our duty, maybe this classic will start showing up on Italian resto menus and in cookbooks again!
Never had it?
If you’re not of Italian extraction or con-nected to the pervasive culture by mar-riage… You’ve probably never tasted Ricotta Pie. But it’s a staple dessert in Italian homes, and it’s easy to make – if you simply follow the recommended procedures!
The crust…
One commenter to the ‘guaranteed authentic’ AllRecipes formula, by Corey Williams and ‘Misty’, has a caution for all who would follow in her floury footsteps:
“The tip to getting the crust to stay in one piece is to FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS,” says bldrdgirl. You MUST let it chill in the fridge.”
The crust protocol starts out pretty standard… “Combine flour, sugar, and baking powder together in a large bowl; cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Mix in beaten eggs and van-illa. Divide dough into 4 balls, wrap in plastic, and chill for at least 30 minutes.”
Three hours might be better. But no need to refrigerate it overnight, or anything like that. It is an ultra-short crust and will fall apart in your hands as you place it in the pie pan. Just piece it together so it comes at least up to the edge of the pan and folds over the rim.
Once you master the intricacies – and idiosyncrasies – of this crust, you’ll want to use it all sorts of fancy pies and quiches. It puffs up while baking, making a pretty show on the plate!
The filling…
You’re making an enhanced custard. Which is to say, the ingredient list is ‘short but sweet’ in all res-pects: 6 Large Eggs, 1 cup / 255 ml sugar, 1.5 lb / 680 g Ricotta cheese (drained), 1 teaspoon / Vanilla Extract… And 1/4 cup / 60 ml chocolate chips. And that’s just for ONE 9 in / 22.5 cm pie. (The recipe makes 2…)
One commenter at AllRecipes echoed a thought I had on my first read-through of the recipe… Why not kick-up the already enhanced custard another notch by using Almond Extract instead of Vanilla? That’s an old chef’s secret when whipping up a batch of pastry cream to stuff doughnuts, Napoleons, Croissantes or Profiteroles!
My take
Go ahead and add 1/2 cup / 125 ml of chocolate chips if you want to! I’ll freely admit I would do that, without hesitation.
About the top crust… The lattice is an attractive addition, and it ensures that the custard cooks prop-erly in the middle, because it holds in some of the heat, but does not act as a steam chamber that would make the custard soft and runny. It’s also a value-added appearance enhancement that ups the overall appeal of the dish even more!
If you love pastry cream, Vanilla Custard pie or the filling in Boston Cream doughnuts… You’ll go head-over-heels for this fantastic treat!
~ Maggie J.