Have I told you guys how much I love ricotta cheese?
It’s quite alarming, really. I buy a large tub almost on a weekly basis, and we manage to polish it off with no trouble at all, even if I don’t actually cook with it. We pile it onto toast and top it with honey or jam for breakfast, we dollop it into scrambled eggs or frittatas for dinner, and my all-time favourite pancake recipe is Bill Granger’s impossibly fluffy ricotta hotcakes, which I often make on weekends as a lovely breakfast treat (I plan on posting the recipe for those on here soon because I need to talk about them properly!). I’ve also discovered that I always prefer this Ricotta Cheesecake recipe over regular cream-cheese ones, because of it being so much lighter and easier to make.
I am always looking for new ways to use ricotta in my cooking, and as soon as I saw this recipe on my dear friend Paola’s gorgeous blog ‘Italy On My Mind’, I knew I was bound to fall in love with it. I met Paola in the Daily Plenty workshop I attended a few months ago, after following her on instagram for a short while before that, and my love for her recipes and style of cooking and storytelling just grows with every post she shares. Italian food and culture have an unmatchable charm, and she manages to make you fall in love with them even more with her passion and authenticity (and her gorgeous Italian mama!).
I made this recipe a few times now, modifying and adapting it slightly each time till I reached the ideal version for my taste. It may look complicated or rather intimidating to make, but trust me; it really isn’t. To prove it to you, I actually made a video of myself making the pie, with the help of my very patient and supportive instagram husband! (instagram husbands are TOTALLY a thing btw)
This is my first ever video (scroll down to the end of the post to see it!), so please bear with me and do excuse any amateur-ish qualities. I was SO dreading venturing into the world of videos, thinking that it would take ages to shoot and edit and would be a total hassle and massively overwhelming…and I was so right!
Seriously, it took us almost three FULL days to get this video done. I feel like I wasted a significant chunk of my youth slaving away in iMovie, trying to get the cuts and speeds and music juuust right, and watching it so many times I almost got sick of the whole thing by the end of it. I won’t lie, it was pretty damn exhausting lol. If it weren’t for my dear husband, I would’ve most DEFINITELY given up and not finished it…thankfully, he has the patience of a Kung Fu master. How on EARTH do people make actual, full-length movies?? Errrmahgeerrd.
I must say that I am, however, quite happy with how it turned out in the end! I can’t promise too many videos in the future (life’s way too short, man), but at least now I know what it involves and might attempt making more of them if time allows (and if the Mr. is around to calm me down in my embarrassingly frequent meltdowns).
Back to the pie though: it’s just wonderful to make it at the start of the week to be enjoyed for light, summery lunches throughout the subsequent few days. It packs really well (ideal for taking a slice to work!), and can be eaten cold, room temperature or reheats beautifully in a toaster or oven. It is also PERFECT to take to a picnic or dish party/potluck, which is precisley what I did a few weeks ago when I was invited to a food blogger’s christmas lunch. I prepared everything the day before, cooked it and popped it in the fridge till the next day. It travels really well and looks quite impressive on any dining table/picnic spread! …Oh, and it’s SO CHEESY! NOMS.
The crust is a breeze to make, and comes together in just a couple of minutes in a food processor. I made mine with just over half whole-wheat flour for added nutritiousness. The filling couldn’t be simpler either; just ricotta, spinach, eggs, herbs and seasoning! If you cannot get your hands on ricotta cheese (I hear you, Cairo readers!), it is actually SUPER easy to make it yourself at home. I used to make it all the time back when I lived in Egypt; it takes a mere 20-30 minutes and just three basic ingredients to make. Find the method here and here.
I hope you enjoy the video! I actually created a Youtube channel so that I can post any future videos all in one place, so please subscribe here if you would like to stay updated. Let me know what you think of our video attempt, and if you decide to give this delicious recipe a go!
