Something Sweet: March 2005 Archives

I kept the main ingredient of the chocolate puddings I made the other night, ricotta, secret from Todd until he told me what he thought of them because he doesn't like ricotta. He told me he liked them well enough, but that the texture felt like a mistake. I liked the texture, a cross between mousse and cheesecake. This was a recipe from Giada DeLaurentiis on the Food Network that I adjusted from 6 servings to 2.

Drain 1/2 pound ricotta for a couple hours, then add it to a bowl with 1 egg yolk, 2 ounces melted chocolate (I melt in microwave until almost melted, then stir until the carryover heat has finished the job), a tablespoon sugar and a splash of almond extract. I only have a hand-held mixter with one type of attachment, so first I whipped the egg white with a pinch of cream of tarter to soft peaks, then whipped in a tablespoon sugar (beaters and bowl must be clean to get volume with the white). Then I beat the ricotta with the other ingredients there. Stirred some of the whites into the ricotta mixture to lighten, then folded in the rest of the whites. Baked in a water bath for 25 minutes in a 325 degree oven, then cooled for a few hours in the fridge.