Sweet Ricotta Pie

It isn't Easter time without a ricotta pie! I know there are hundreds of different ways to make ricotta pie, but if you like the flavor of cannoli's then you're going to love this. A blend of ricotta, orange zest, candied orange peel, mini chocolate chips and a hint of cinnamon flavors this pie. You still have plenty of time to make this, but if you feel rushed and don't have time to make the crust, go ahead and use the pre-made kind, no one's going to call you out on it, or if you know of a good quality frozen one, you could use that too. But if you're feeling adventurous and want to make it from scratch, you won't regret it, the crust stays crunchy even the next day!
Recipe adapted from Scorsese Family Cookbook

Ingredients for Crust:

2 cups flour, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/2 cup of vegetable shortening, 1 large egg beaten slightly, 3 tablespoons of ice water.



To make the pie crust:
Into a bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the shortening and blend until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a bowl, whisk together the egg and 2 tablespoons of the ice water. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and toss to combine, adding more water, if necessary, to form a dough. Chill the dough, wrapped in plastic, until firm.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a circle 1/8-inch thick and fit it into a 9-inch pie pan. Crimp the edge, prick the bottom, and chill while making the filling.

Now for an important note: Make sure you drain your ricotta good! You don't want it to be wet, make sure you get all the excess moisture out or else it will affect the cooking time and texture. You could drain it overnight in the fridge or a couple of hours before you put it together.

Here's the filling: 1 1/2 lbs of ricotta, 3/4 cup sugar, 5 large eggs, 1 tablespoon vanilla, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, zest of one orange, 1/2 cup of mini chocolate chips, semi sweet, and 1/2 cup of diced candied orange peel.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the ricotta with the sugar until very smooth. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cinnamon. Stir in the candied fruit, zest of one orange and chocolate chips. Pour the filling into the pie shell. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and swirl it with the tip of a knife.
Bake the pie for 45 minutes, or until ricotta is set and toothpick comes out clean. Let cool and chill.

Make sure you chill it down in the refrigerator before you slice into it to receive the optimum full flavor.

Happy Easter!