Ricotta Tart with Figs and Rosemary Honey

Sometimes, you just want to make a pretty dessert. I mean, it’s ideal if it’s both pretty and tastes fantastic, so we’re gunning for the two, but pretty things are so lovely to place on a table for friends just for the satisfaction of watching everyone pull out their phones and happily snap away in competition for the best instagram photo. Remember when people just looked at food and then ate it without a single care to preserving the moment in filtered glory? Those were not the days, in our opinion – it’s actually quite wonderful to see so many folks with a newfound passion for photography simply because of the ease and delight with which you can use your phone to capture beautiful moments.

Enough of that – here’s a recipe that was inspired by Melissa Clark on NYT Cooking. Her ricotta tart had a a very floral, citrusy crust and a bit more spice in the filling, but we’re giving a nod to her culinary genius while taking the fork in the road and angling for a more rich, herbaceous, and fig-laden rendition. It still celebrates the under-used and under-rated ricotta cheese, and having just returned from a vacation in southern Italy, I am thoroughly ashamed with myself for previously ignoring this incredibly light, creamy cultured masterpiece of the mediterranean.

It also swaps in one of my favorite quick upscale toppings: homemade rosemary honey. If you’re not a fan of rosemary, then you can definitely sub in another herb or flavor your honey with fruit or cinnamon, but don’t shy away from flavoring it at all. It’s really simple to do: spoon about 1/4 cup (or more if you want) of your favorite honey into a small saucepan, heat it on low for a few minutes and add in whatever herb or spice you want – star anise is lovely, or a cinnamon stick, or slightly crushed fresh rosemary or mint. You will love what emerges – an incredibly fragrant, silky, flavored honey that you can drizzle on yogurt or in your iced tea – or put in this tart!

A note on the photos – here we were still fiddling with the crust recipe, and used Melissa Clarks’ addition of poppyseeds (which is why you’re seeing tons of black specks in the images). We decided to opt out and go with a plain, shortbread-like crust to allow the rosemary honey and figs to take center stage, but by all means check out her original recipe and try it for yourself!

Print Recipe

5 from 2 votes

Gluten Free Ricotta Tart with Figs and Rosemary Honey

A creamy tart with tons of fresh figs and honey

Prep Time45 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Chilling time1 hour hr

Course: Breakfast, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free

Keyword: fig, honey, ricotta, rosemary, tart

Servings: 12 people

Calories: 150kcal

Author: Amelia Farber

Equipment

• 9 or 10-inch tart pan

Ingredients

For the Crust:

• 1 1/2 Cup gluten free flour 1-1 mix with xanthan gum
• 1/2 Cup almond meal or flour
• 1/3 Cup white sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/2 Cup salted butter chilled and cut into cubes
• 1 large egg

For the filling:

• 1/4 Cup mascarpone
• 2 Tbsp white sugar
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 Cups ricotta
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tbsp rosemary honey instructions below
• 1/8 tsp salt

For the topping:

• About 12 fresh figs slice each one into thin slices to arrange on top
• 2-3 Tbsp rosemary honey still warm so it drizzles easily

Instructions

• First step is to make the crust, which requires 1+ hours of chilling time, then rolling, then chilling for another 30 minutes, so bear that in mind before starting. To make the crust, either use a food processor or stir by hand: the flour, almond meal, sugar, and salt. Add the cubed, chilled butter and pulse until the mixture comes together (or knead in the butter by hand until it’s fully incorporated). Add in the 1 large egg and either knead or pulse until the dough is fully mixed. It will be fairly stiff – roll the dough into a large ball, cover in plastic wrap, and place in the fridge to chill for 1+ hour. Once the dough is chilled, remove from fridge (if you’ve chilled it longer, you may need to let it sit on the counter to warm up a bit before rolling as it will be very hard).
• Roll your tart crust dough between two sheets of parchment paper until it’s about 3/8 inch thick (a bit over 1/4 inch eyeballing it). Peel back the top layer of parchment paper and place your 9 or 10-inch (whichever you have – it’ll work both ways) tart pan upside down on top of the rolled out dough. Flip the entire ensemble and carefully press the dough into the corners of the tart pan and peel off the bottom layer of parchment paper (or, if you’re confident, just lift the tart dough and place it in the tart pan, no flipping necessary). You can use a butterknife to cut off the excess dough and even the top edges of the tart.
• Chill the entire crust again, in the pan, for 30 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 325° Fahrenheit. Once the crust is chilled, pop it in the oven and bake for 20 minutes. While the crust is baking, make your rosemary honey. Heat 3-4 Tbsp honey in a saucepan with a sprig of fresh, slightly crushed rosemary over low heat for 2-3 minutes stirring occasionally – remove rosemary before using. Then, make the filling.
• Use an electric mixer and a large bowl to beat together the mascarpone and white sugar (about 1 minute). Add in the ricotta, the two eggs, the rosemary honey, and the salt and beat until fully combined. Once the crust is out of the oven, pour the filling mixture into the crust (it can still be hot) and smooth the top. Bake tart for 35-40 minutes until the center is just set (almost no jiggle).
• Let it cool for about ten minutes before decorating. While it cools, slice your figs into 1/8 inch slices (or thicker if you want, but you’ll need more figs!) and warm up the leftover rosemary honey (or make more if you’re out). Arrange fig slices in concentric circles or however looks best to you, then evenly drizzle with the warm rosemary honey. Let the tart cool completely before serving, then you’re all set!
• Sister Tip: as mentioned above the recipe, get creative with your own flavored honey! If rosemary isn’t your thing, try heating the honey up with star anise or a cinnamon stick, or mint or thyme! You can use the fragrant, flavored syrup on multitudes of other dishes, even just on yogurt or in your iced tea!

Tag @sisterssansgluten on Instagram if you snap a photo of your tart!