When it’s cool enough to bake again, but while tomatoes are still in season, make this tomato ricotta pie! Here you’ll find a rich, buttery crust that meets creamy ricotta, perfectly balanced by a bright burst of acidity from summer tomatoes.
Arliano Update (Aggiornamento Arliano):
A few prolonged heatwaves with strong winds have forced us to sit back and put a pause in our landscaping efforts. Spring will be a better time for new plants, anyway. The poor oleander bushes and cypress trees that we’ve already planted are suffering. If they survive through the winter, they’ll be fine, and hopefully stronger for it. In the small veggie garden, onions and peppers remain – It was a weird gardening year, which started off strong with my weed blocking measures, followed by near neglect as disappointment set in over the small crop yield and proliferation of weeds despite my (truly) best efforts.
We’ve been enjoying our first pool season and had a couple of parties to inaugurate it. Airbnb guests have also been loving it, and a good chunk of next summer has already been booked. We feel fortunate!
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Tomato Ricotta Pie
Ingredients
- 1 9-inch (23 cm) pie crust (homemade or store bought. If homemade, I use Martha Stewart’s recipe for Pâte brisée (pie dough). https://www.marthastewart.com/317858/pate-brisee-pie-dough
- 3 cups tomatoes (about 1 lb., or 16 ounces once cored and de-seeded), and cut into large bite size pieces. (Choose”meaty” varieties such as Plum or San Marzano)
- 500 grams full fat ricotta, drained overnight
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 1 cup (about 3 ounces) finely grated or ground Parmesan
- Choose one: 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, OR a few fresh basil leaves torn into small pieces
- 1 teaspoon kosher or fine sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Directions
- The night before, place the ricotta in a fine mesh sieve and set it over a bowl to drain in the refrigerator
- If making pie dough, once done, wrap it in plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator to rest for one hour. If using store bought dough, skip to the next step
- Take the pie dough out of the refrigerator to slightly soften. Roll out the pie dough into a 12-inch circle, a little thicker than 1/8 inch and transfer it to a pie dish or tin. Prick the bottom of the dough with a fork and flute the edges of the dough. Place the dish/tin into the freezer while you prepare the rest of the recipe. Pre-heat the oven to 350F (180C)
- Core and de-seed the tomatoes (discarding the core and seeds). Cut the tomatoes into large bite size pieces and place them into a colander to drain
- Mix the drained ricotta with the eggs, all the seasonings, the tomatoes, and 2/3 of the grated parmesan. Save the remaining cheese for the topping
- Spoon and spread evenly the ricotta/tomato mixture into the pie crust. Sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the top and bake for 90 minutes. At the 70 minute mark, if the pie is brownng too much, loosely cover it with aluminum foil. The pie will puff up, then level down once cooled. Let the pie cool for at least 60 minutes before slicing, so it has a chance to firm up and give you clean slices. Serve slightly warm, room temperature, or chilled. Refrigerate any leftovers.
Greg Nelson Cooks 