Adapted from “Made in Italy,” by Giorgio Locatelli (Ecco). Makes 1 tart, about 8-10 servings.
Ingredients
PASTRY:
1 cup butter
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 eggs
3 cups plus 2 tablespoons flour
FILLING:
3/4 cup wheat grains (bulgur), pearl barley may be substituted
1 cup milk
Pared peel from 1/2lemon, left whole, the rest grated
2 pinches of ground cinnamon
1/2 cup superfine sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup fresh ricotta cheese
4 teaspoons orange flower water
1/3 cup candied citron (or lemon) peel and candied orange peel, chopped
3 eggs, separated
A little melted butter
Confectioners’ sugar to dust
Directions
Make the pastry: With the paddle attachment on the mixer, blend the butter until soft. Add the sugar and continue to mix until the mixture turns pale. Add the eggs one by one, and when they are incorporated, add the flour. Continue to mix until all the flour is incorporated. Divide into 2 balls and refrigerate.
Make the filling: Put the wheat in a pan, cover with water (no salt) and boil for 20 minutes. Leave to cool in its own water, then drain in a sieve.
Bring the milk to a boil in a pan. Then add the drained wheat, the piece of lemon peel, 1 pinch of cinnamon, a tablespoon of the superfine sugar and the salt. Cook really slowly until all the milk has been absorbed (about an hour). Take the lemon peel out and spread the mixture on a plate to cool.
Put the ricotta into a sieve to drain off its liquid. Mix it with the rest of the sugar, the grated lemon zest, another pinch of cinnamon, the orange flower water and the candied fruit. Add the egg yolks a little at a time, mixing in well. Stir in the cooled wheat mixture.
Whip two of the egg whites until stiff and incorporate into the mixture; discard the third.
Assemble the tart: Brush a 13-inch round (2 inches deep) tart tin with melted butter. Roll out one of the pastry balls and use to line the tart tin. Spoon in the wheat mixture and trim the pastry around the rim of the tin. Leave to rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll out the other ball of pastry and cut into strips. Lay these over the top of the tart to make a lattice design, sealing well at the outer edges. (You may have some pastry left over.) Bake for about an hour until colored, then turn the heat down to 250 and bake until a skewer inserted into the center of the filling comes out clean (around 10 minutes). Cool inside the tin and dust with confectioners’ sugar.
