small bunch of chives and flowers from 5 or 6 chive blossoms
1egg beaten
Filling
250gramstub of ricotta cheese
185gramtub of Philadelphia or cream cheese
60gramsfinely grated Parmesan parmigiano reggiano
2largeeggs
Small bunch of chives finely choppedyou can add some chopped nasturtium leaves too if you wish
salt and freshly cracked black pepper
nutmeg optional a few scrapings of nutmeg on a grater
Instructions
For pastry
Cut butter into cubes, then Rub butter and flour and salt together until resembles breadcrumbs then add the chopped chives/blossoms and mixAdd the egg, mix in and bring into a ball of dough, cover and chill for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 180c/350f Roll out pastry and line a pie tin, prick pastry with a fork, add baking paper and baking beans and blind bake for 20 minutes, remove baking beans and paper and bake for a further 10 minutes. Turn oven off and let pastry cool.
For filling
preheat oven to 150c (i have a fan oven so put it slightly lower 135c-140c)Whisk together the cream cheese and ricotta until smooth. Add the grated Parmesan and eggs and whisk again for a minute until creamy. Add chopped chives, salt and pepper and mix. Add nutmeg if you wish.Add filling to tart shell and spread out until smooth. Decorate with edible flowers and herbs if you like (optional) bake for 30/35 minutes until set with a slight jiggle in the middle. Turn off oven and leave the cheesecake in the oven with the door open for 20 minutes, then remove. Allow to cool completely, then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours/ ideally longer, before slicing. (i like to bake the night before and chill it in the fridge over night.)
Keyword cheesecake, parmesan, pastry, ricotta, tart