FOOD: BASIL RICOTTA TART w/ NECTARINES & PROSCIUTTO

Dear Steemian Friends,

In search for an easy Tart recipe, I came across a simple tart wih ricotta filling.. I had the prosciutto and nectarines as well as ricotta in the fridge, so I thought... why not add these other ingredients and see what will come out of my experiment. And there´s a pot of basil on the kitchen window sill. So that´s it, a new tart recipe is born in my household that I want to share with you.

Making use of durum wheat makes the pastry so crispy that you would only want to eat the crust alone... try this salty sweet tart, you´ll surely like to make this more often.

So lets´s make it then:

Basil Ricotta Tart

Ingredients:

For the Dough:
75 wheat flour
25 g durum wheat flour
½ tsp salt
45 g butter
3-4 tablespoons milk

For the Filling:
2 Nectarines
1 tablespoon brown sugar
250 g ricotta
Basil
Salt, Pepper, Nutmeg

8-10 Prosciutto slices
Basil leaves, red pepper
olive oil

Preparations:

Preheat the oven at 200°C..

Place the wholewheat flour, durum semolina wheat, salt and butter into the kitchen mixer. Carefully add the milk-water mix by and by until the dough holds together. Flatten the dough, wrap it in a trasparent clinging plastic and let cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, wash the nectarines, dry with paper towel, stone, and cut into quarters. Place the nectarines on a baking sheet and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for about 6-8 minutes until the sugar begins to caramelize so that the nectarine gets a bit of golden color.
Roll out the dough and use it to line a square baking pan of about 20x20 cm. You may also use a pie form if you prefer to use it.

Prick the dough several times with a fork, cover it with baking paper and add dried beans to bake blind the pastry. Let the pastry cool completely ready to use for filling.

Mix the ricotta with the finely chopped fresh basil and nutmeg. Season with salt & pepper according to your taste. Fill the cooled tart crust with the seasoned ricotta then arrange the nectarines by pressing slightly on top of the ricotta alternately with the prosciutto slices (see above photo). Garnish the tart with fresh basil leaves, crushed red pepper and sprinkle with a bit olive oil...