Strawberry Rye Tart
Recipe by Executive Chef, John McConnell
Ingredients:
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup rye flour
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 oz. salted butter, 1 stick frozen or very cold
1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
3 Tablespoons ice water
12 oz whole milk Ricotta cheese
1 orange zested, to taste
Clif Family Solar Grown™ Raw Honey, to taste
1 lb. fresh strawberries, trimmed
3 Tbsp. Clif Family Organic Strawberry Preserves
Balsamic vinegar, to taste
Crust Preparation:
Whisk together the flours, sugar and salt in a large bowl. In a separate small bowl, combine apple cider vinegar with the 3 tablespoons ice water.
Using the large side of a box grater, grate the frozen butter over the flour mixture. Gently fold in the butter until it resembles a coarse meal texture. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of ice-cold vine-gar-water over the flour mixture. Gently stir the water into the flour until combined. If the dough seems dry, add more ice water mixture a couple of teaspoons at a time, just until the dough comes together. Form the dough into a disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400 degrees.
On a lightly floured piece of parchment paper, roll out the pie crust into a large rectangle about 12 x 9 inches and just under 1/4-inch thick. Use a rolling pizza cutter to trim any rough edges. Move the parchment paper and crust to a baking sheet, preferably rimless. Pierce the crust a few times with a fork to prevent it from puffing up too much in the oven. Bake until crust is deep golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Check on the crust halfway through baking; rotating if needed for even browning. Remove from oven and cool completely on the pan.
Prepare the tart:
While the crust is cooling, in a small bowl, combine the Ricotta cheese with the freshly grated orange zest and honey to taste. Hull the strawberries and slice into 1/4-inch pieces and place in a large bowl. Gently toss with the strawberry preserves and a dash of balsamic vinegar if de-sired.
Move the cooled crust onto a serving platter or board. Spread ricotta mixture over the top in an even layer, then arrange sliced strawberries in a single, slightly overlapping layer in a decora-tive pattern. Serve immediately or within an hour to maintain crust flakiness. Enjoy!