Tuscan Ricotta Tart with Peaches. I’ve met so many incredibly talented and lovely people through Instagram. That’s where I first found Giulia Scarpaleggia (and her website Jul’s Kitchen), who lives and cooks in Tuscany. Her food is gorgeous and when she told me she had a cookbook coming out, I couldn’t wait to see it. The book is a beautiful guide to the Markets of Tuscany and the recipes they inspire, including this fresh ricotta tart (I added the peaches for a summer twist). The flavors are a classic combination from this region. I adore the food, the people, the terrain, the wine and the sweets of Tuscany. I’ve often fantasized about moving abroad and the Italian countryside is always first on the list.
This ricotta tart, caught my eye when I was flipping through the pages of Giulia’s book. Her tart, which she calls, Torta Squisita “exquisite cake”, is made with ricotta (I made it from scratch, which is so easy), chocolate, candied orange peel and a star anise flavored liqueur. It is quintessentially Italian. I happened to have some juicy, perfectly ripe peaches sitting on the counter, so I decided to top the tart with them. It is super tasty and an ode to summer, but it would be just as good without the peaches, served with a strong cup of coffee.
Ingredients
Pastry
- 2/3 cup (150g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 1/3 cups (300g) all-purpose flour
- zest of 1 lemon
- Pinch salt
Ricotta Filling
- 1 2/3 cups (400g) ricotta cheese
- 1/2 cup (100g) sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 5 oz (150g) dark chocolate roughly chopped
- 3 1/2 oz (100g) candied orange zest I used the zest of 1/2 a grapefruit
- 1/4 cup Sassolino liqueur or Strega or Vinsanto (anise flavored liqueur)
- 3 peaches peeled, pitted and cut into thin sectioned (optional)
Instructions
Tart Dough
- Mix the butter and sugar until well combined in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the egg. Incorporate the flour, zest, and salt. Mix until just combined. Press into a disk, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- Roll out the dough and fit to a Fluted Tart Pan, 10 Inches by 2 Inches, freeze the tart shell until ready to fill.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
Filling
- Combine the ricotta (here’s a super easy recipe to make your own!) with the eggs and sugar. Add the zest, chocolate and liqueur. Pour the filling into the prepared tart shell. Top with sliced peaches. Bake for about 50-55 minutes or until the ricotta filling is set and caramelized.
- Allow the tart to cool in the pan for about 30 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely before refrigerating. Serve cool or at room temperature.
This tart looks so delicious! I love the combination of ricotta and peaches – perfect for the summer ♥
Where is the ricotta recipe? it says “to follow”, but I don’t see it below the tart recipe. I went to your Instagram (which I don’t normally use), and didn’t find it there either. I searched your website and found a ricotta recipe as part of another recipe, with red wine poached cherries. It uses goat milk. Is that the one I should use with this recipe? Thank you.
Thank you again Zoe, you know I’ll make this again soon, using ripe peaches! thank you for your words and your support, you’re the best!
Hi! Do you happen to have any suggestions for something to replace the liqueur? I couldn’t find any at the store. Thanks
I love to bake and you are such an inspiration!
Re: the tart crust. Is it possible to make this recipe by hand? I don’t have any machinery!
How important is the alcohol in this recipe? Is there an alternative type we can use, if we don’t have Sassolino liqueur? Thanks
I made this last week and it received nothing but rave reviews, especially from my Italian friends! The only change that I made was sprinkling the chocolate on the bottom of the crust prior to freezing so that the chocolate did not melt into the ricotta crust and ruin the aesthetics. I also used gluten free flour but since it was devoured immediately upon removal from the oven no one noticed the crumbly crust. GREAT recipe!! Thank you!!!