‘All Day, Every Day’ Baked Ricotta Tart

Makes one delicious tart, enough to share some with your friends and then eat some more for breakfast, afternoon tea or dessert the following day…

The base of this pie is sticky and chewy and nutty and sweet – it’s my favourite part! I am totally addicted to any kind of nut paired with maple syrup at the moment. The ricotta filling was my kids’ favourite, so there was a bit of swapping going on at the dinner table! But eaten all together, it really is very good. Add on the poached rhubarb and a drizzle of the pink syrup, perhaps a slice of lime, and it feels like a fancy restaurant dessert, but really isn’t very hard at all…

Because the base is sticky this isn’t the kind of tart you would take with you on a picnic, but is better served on a plate and eaten with a spoon. You could line the base of your tart tin with a circle of baking paper to help make it easier to remove : just cut the circle a little bigger than the bottom of the tin, and then fold it over the removable portion so that the edges feed out under the bottom of the tin, this helps keep the paper in place when you are pressing in the filling. Or if you’re like me and like to be rustic, then don’t worry yourself, just grease the sides and bottom of the tin well with butter.

A quick note about the rhubarb: this is the only way I can cook rhubarb and have it turn out the way they do in good cafes or fancy restaurants (every other way and the rhubarb just falls apart!). The trick here is to poach it in liquid which is only just simmering, and only cook it for about 4 minutes. Test it with a knife and remove it with a slotted spoon as soon as it feels tender; it will continue to cook a little more from the residual heat, so as soon as it feels tender and not crunchy pull it out! Then sit down and have a cup of tea while you continue to cook the remaining syrup for another 5 or 10 minutes or until it has reduced to around half and is lovely and syrup-y.

Nutty Almond Base

Preheat your oven to 180°C. Grease a medium tart tin well with butter, use a tart tin with a removable base if you have one. Line with baking paper too, if using.

For the base – in a bowl combine all the base ingredients and stir together. Using your fingers, push the mixture into the base of the tin and up the sides. Keep squishing until there are no holes. Bake in the preheated oven for around 15-20 minutes or until golden brown all over.

For the filling – drain any excess liquid from the ricotta until it is nice and firm. In a medium bowl, whip together all of the ricotta filling ingredients – I used a wooden spoon and kept stirring until the filling was nice and smooth, which only took a minute or so. Pour the filling into the pre-baked base and slide it back into the oven.

Bake for around 45 minutes or until the ricotta filling has puffed up and is golden brown on top. Have a little look 30 minutes or so in, and if you’re worried it is browning too fast then turn the oven down to 160°C for the last 15 minutes or so. You know the tart is ready when the ricotta filling has set in the middle.

Allow the tart to cool completely before slicing. It keeps very well in the fridge, and tastes very good the next day.

For the rhubarb – slice the rhubarb into uniform lengths. In a wide based pan (I used a frying pan with deep sides) bring the water, xylitol, vanilla seeds and pod and cinnamon to a boil, then lower the heat until the water is just simmering. Ease in the rhubarb pieces and allow to poach for just a few minutes. Keep a little knife at the ready, and after 3 or 4 minutes test a piece of rhubarb – if the knife slides in easily enough then it is ready! Using a flat slotted spoon (or I’ve heard you can use tongs for this if you have a gentle hand) remove the rhubarb into a bowl, doing your best not to squish it! If it squishes, never mind it will still taste great and look pretty, and provides a great contrast to the creaminess of the ricotta. Allow the remaining liquid to boil for 5 to 10 minutes or until you are happy it has reduced into a lovely syrup. Pour the liquid into the bowl with the rhubarb and leave it to cool.

To serve, cut yourself a lovely slice of tart making sure to get all of the good sticky, chewy base. Place it on your favourite plate, and top with a few pieces of your beautifully poached rhubarb and a spoonful of the pretty pink syrup. I really enjoyed the slice of lime with mine, it looked extra pretty and added a lovely little zing.