Difficulty: Average
Make Ahead
Serves 24
Ingredients:
Shell
- 3 cups flour
- 1-1/4 cups sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch of salt
- 1 tablespoon sour cream
- 2 cups shortening
- 1 pound margarine (or 3 tablespoons shortening plus margarine to equal 2 cups)
- 2 eggs, slightly beaten
- crushed pineapple, drained (optional)
Filling
- 3 pounds ricotta cheese
- 2 cups sugar
- 6-8 large or 12 medium eggs
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 1-1/2 cups milk (1/4 more if too dry)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla
Instructions:
- Mix all shell ingredients with a pastry blender.
- Roll out like regular pie crust, and line a deep pyrex pie dish.
- Here, if you desire, put a layer of crushed pineapple in pie dish.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Beat ricotta until smooth.
- Add sugar, a little at a time.
- Add eggs, cream, milk and vanilla.
- Pour into shell.
- Bake until set, checking after 35 minutes.
- Pie will be set when knife inserted in center comes out clean.
An alternate method would be to bake the pie the “Old Italian” way:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees; place pie on second rack and bake for 10 minutes.
- Turn over to 300 degrees and continue baking for 1 hour.
- Check for doneness.
- Turn off heat and leave in oven to cool.