Ricotta and Tomato Tart

This is a great recipe based on the one in Rose Elliot’s Sumptuous Suppers (I really do like anything with the word sumptuous in the title). It’s one of my favourite cookbooks as it contains lots of great pictures and more gourmet recipes that are relatively easy.

It’s certainly not a healthy meal, though I do substitute some of the cheese with tofu to cut down on the fat (I said some!!), and serve with a spinach salad. I originally wanted to serve it with an arugula salad, but sadly our small town Thrifty Foods doesn’t know what arugula is.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
1 250g pkg soft tofu
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 eggs plus 2 egg yolks
4 plum tomatoes, diced
1 bunch of fresh basil, loosely torn.
salt and pepper to taste
4 Tbsp Pesto plus more for garnish

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375F.
2. Put the ricotta, parmesan and tofu into a food processor. Blend until smooth.
3. Add butter, eggs and yolks. Season with salt and pepper, and blend until smooth.
4. Spoon half of the mixture into an 8” springform pan.
5. In a bowl, combined diced tomatoes with pesto. Add a handful of fresh basil to taste.
6. Add the tomato mixture to the springform ricotta mixture, spreading lightly until even.
7. Gently spread the remaining ricotta mixture on top.
8. Bake tart for 1 – 1 1/4 hours or until browned. A toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. Let stand for 5 minutes and remove sides of the pan.

The recipe calls for a sauce made of 4 Tbsp pesto with 4 Tbsp water, but I found it made the pesto too watery and didn’t quite balance out the flavours of the cheese, so instead I added the pesto to the center of the cake. Instead, serve with a balsamic glaze and garnish with pine nuts.

Toughest Critic Rating: 8/10