NZ Ricotta and Raspberry Tartlets

Everyone loves a little sweet treat for afternoon tea or to finish a meal. Kathy Paterson created these little tartlets to savour the flavour of fresh spring ricotta.

Makes 8 tartlets

Pastry

250g plain flour

125g cold butter, diced

2 tablespoons caster sugar

1 egg yolk

50ml cold water

Filling

100g ricotta, well drained

1 egg, plus 1 egg yolk, (preferably not large eggs)

3 tablespoons caster sugar

finely grated zest of 1 small lemon

4 teaspoons red fruit jam, we used plum jam

250g fresh raspberries

To finish

100ml cream, whipped

1 scant teaspoon vanilla extract

icing sugar for sprinkling, optional

Make the pastry, put the flour with a pinch of salt into a food processor and pulse once or twice to sift the flour. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the caster sugar and pulse once or twice. Mix together the egg yolk and water and drizzle over the flour mixture. Pulse until the pastry begins to very roughly come together. Tip out onto a lightly floured bench and bring together in a ball then divide the pastry into half. (You will only need half this amount of pastry for 8 tartlets so freeze the other half or alternatively, make and bake blind a further 8 tartlet cases and freeze these for later use).

Usually, you can roll food processor pastry straight away. However, if it feels a little soft and sticky then wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Roll out half the pastry to a thickness of 3-4 mm and cut out 8 rounds using an 8cm cutter. Put the pastry in 8 x 7cm round tartlet tins, pressing the pastry well into the sides and up the edges. Very lightly prick once with a fork but not right through the pastry. Put in a shallow baking tray and put in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180°C.

Line the pastry cases with crumpled baking paper and fill with uncooked rice. Bake for 15 minutes or until just beginning to colour around the edges, then remove from the oven. Carefully remove the paper and rice. Return pastry cases to the oven to dry out the pastry (just a few minutes but keep an eye out so the pastry edges don’t darken too much). Leave to cool.

Once the tartlet cases are cool, make the filling.  Put the ricotta, egg, egg yolk, caster sugar and lemon zest in a bowl and mix to combine. The mixture should be able to hold its shape.

Put ½ teaspoon of jam in the base of each pastry case – just a blob, no need to spread, then fill each pastry case with the ricotta filling and dot 3 raspberries on each. Return to the oven and bake for 15 minutes until the filling is just set and the pastry is well browned and crisp.

Remove from the oven and as soon as cool enough to handle, remove tartlets from their tins, putting on a wire rack as you go.

Serve warm topped with a dollop of whipped cream flavoured with vanilla and any extra fresh raspberries. Sprinkle with icing sugar, if wished.

Tips

-       Freeze the egg whites for later use.

-       We often make the pastry cases the day before and keep them in an airtight container. Put pastry cases back in the tartlet tins before adding filling and baking.

-       The filling should puff during baking but not spread.