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CINNAMON RICOTTA PIE
What a heavenly way to end a wonderful Italian meal! This one will have you swooning out of your chair!
Recipe in the Bertolli Cookbook
Serves 12

PASTRY:
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons milk (or more if needed)
FILLING:
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 container ricotta cheese (15 oz.)
2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups fresh berries (strawberries, raspberries)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

PASTRY: In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Stir in olive oil and rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Drizzle with 4 tablespoons of the milk and stir with a large fork until mixture begins to come together. If needed, drizzle added milk, to form a dough. Gather dough into a ball, flatten slightly, and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill 15 minutes.

FILLING: Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon. Stir in ricotta, egg whites and vanilla until well-blended.

Roll pastry between 2 sheets of lightly floured wax paper to a 12-inch circle. Fit into a 9-inch pie pan or 10-inch tart pan. Trim excess pastry, and crimp edges with tines of a fork. Pour filling into pastry shell; bake 45-50 minutes or until filling is just set in the center. Cool on a wire rack. Serve chilled or at room temperature, topped with fresh berries if desired.

Copyright © 2001 Carol Stevens, Shaboom's Kitchen, All Rights Reserved