Yumm cake! With all these trips I posted a lot less recipes lately, I am making up for that with an amazing one, and it can’t be anything other than cake, or even better: pie! The usual italian crostata with a filling to die for. It’s filled with chocolate, mascarpone and ricotta!
I made this chocolate and mascarpone (and ricotta) pie for the first time last week and it looked so promising that I took pictures of it right away, usually I only take pictures of things I am sure will turn out well.
I cut a big chunk of it when it was still warm to bring to a friend. She tried it, her eyes went really big and she said: “this is amazing, what is it?” I laughed, knowing that I can make several amazing cakes, pies and crostatas, and not expecting this particular one to be any better than most of the others. Then I also tried it. My reaction was just the same! So the recipe of this chocolate and mascarpone and ricotta pie must go in the blog right away!
Ingredients
- 1 dose of pasta frolla with a 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 250 gr all-purpose flour (1 1/2 cup + 2 tbs)
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 100 gr butter (7 tbs)
- 100 gr sugar (scant 1/2 cup)
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 egg
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 tsp brandy or other favorite liquor (optional)
- 250 gr ricotta
- 150 gr sugar
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 small bag vanillina or vanilla flavor
- 10 gr potato starch
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 250 gr mascarpone cheese
- 100 gr bittersweet chocolate chips (I chopped thinly a chocolate bar with 50% cocoa )
Directions
Here I am going to give you quick instructions to prepare the pasta frolla (short pastry dough) for the base of the pie, you can find the full directions here but remember to add 1/2 tsp of baking powder to the flour. The process to make pasta frolla is very simple: sift the flour in a large bowl, stir in the baking powder, add the butter in small chunks. Mix with your fingertips until the consistency is similar to sand. Add all the other ingredients and knead quickly. Form a ball, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile prepare the filling for your Chocolate, mascarpone (and ricotta) pie, it is very simple to make.
With an electric mixer or by hand with a whisk, mix together ricotta, sugar, egg yolks, vanillina or vanilla flavor, potato starch and cinnamon.
Then add mascarpone and chocolate chips or chopped chocolate. Mix well.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (360F). Butter and flour a pie pan of about 22-24 cm (9 inches) or use parchment paper. Parchment paper makes your life easier because you can roll the frolla dough directly on the parchment paper and then transfer everything to the pan but I think the result is slightly less pretty, but tastest just as good. (I used a springform pan because my pie pan is too large, but I should really get a smaller pie pan because it was hard to lay the frolla dough properly.) Roll the dough large enough to cover the bottom and the sides of the pan. Transfer the rolled dough to the pan, and prick the bottom all over with a fork.
Pour in the filling. Fold or cut the extra dough on the sides.
Transfer to the oven and bake for 50 minutes, the filling should pop toward the end of the baking time. Remove from the oven and let cool, this way you let the filling set before cutting the pie.
When cooled down you may dust with powdered sugar but really, this pie made of chocolate, mascarpone and ricotta doesn’t need any help to be amazing.
Enjoy! I did, very much!
*The slices of pie in the pictures are a bit small… that is all there was left… I don’t know how but it disappeared before I could cut a nice slice and take a nice pic of it :P
