If you are a beginner cook, baking tart might sound too challenging. Using my ‘Basic Shortcrust Pastry‘ recipe, this delicious tart can be made quite easily. You don’t have a rolling pin? Don’t worry! You don’t need the rolling pin. You can spread the pastry dough in the pie dish using your hands.

Pie Dish

I used 22.5cm Pie Dish

Ingredients

Shortcrust Pastry
125g Butter *softened
1/4 cup Caster Sugar
1 Egg
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1 & 2/3 cups Plain Flour *You can add extra 1 tablespoon if Egg is large
*Find my ‘Basic Shortcrust Pastry‘ recipe & ‘Easiest Sweet Shortcrust Pastry’ recipe

Filling
250g Ricotta *at room temperature
125g Cream Cheese *at room temperature
1/4 cup Caster Sugar
1 Egg *at room temperature
2 to 3 teaspoons Lemon Juice
1 tablespoon Plain Flour OR Corn Starch
Jam of your choice *Today I used Strawberry Jam
Powdered Sugar for dusting

Method
  1. Beat softened Butter and Sugar until smooth. Beat in Egg and Vanilla, and mix well. Add Flour and gently mix to combine, bring the mixture together, and shape into a disc. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes to firm up.
  2. Roll the dough to 4-5mm thickness and transfer to a pie dish. Trim off the extra dough. *Tips: You can spread the dough in the pie dish, bit by bit, by your hands. Make sure it is all same thickness.
  3. Mix Ricotta, softened Cream Cheese and Caster Sugar in a bowl, add Egg, Lemon Juice and Plain Flour (OR Corn Starch), and mix well. This mixture should be at room temperature or slightly warm.
  4. Spread Jam on the Pastry, and spread the Ricotta mixture evenly.
  5. With the remaining dough, make thin strips to create a lattice finish. You may wish to weave the strips properly, but I usually don’t bother.
  6. Bake in pre-heated oven at 180° for 40 minutes or until golden.
  7. Cool completely. Dust with Powdered Sugar.