Lidia’s Rice and Zucchini Crostata

• Gluten free

• Produce

  • 2 cups Scallions
  • 1 lb Zucchini shredded on, small

• Refrigerated

  • 3 Eggs, large

• Pasta & Grains

  • 1/2 cup Arborio rice

• Baking & Spices

  • 1 Butter to grease
  • 3 tsp Kosher salt

• Oils & Vinegars

  • 1/2 cup Olive oil, Extra Virgin

• Dairy

  • 1 cup Grana padano, grated
  • 1 32-ounce container Ricotta
  • 2 cups Whole milk

• Liquids

  • 1/2 cup Water

Found on afamilyfeast.com

Description

Ingredients

• 32-ounce container of ricotta (see note above)
• 1 pound small zucchini shredded on the large holes of a box grater
• ½ cup Arborio rice
• 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for handling (see note in step 10 of the instructions below)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• Up to ½ cup cold water
• 1 cup grated Grana Padano (or Parmesan if you can’t find Grana Padano)
• 2 cups finely chopped scallions, about two large bunches (Pulse in the food processor to chop)
• 3 large eggs beaten
• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• Butter to grease half sheet pan (12x18 inches)

Directions

• The night before, place ricotta in a cheese cloth placed in a strainer hung over a bowl. Refrigerate and let drain overnight.
• The day of, mix shredded zucchini with raw rice in a large bowl and let sit for one hour at room temperature.
• In a food processor, place flour and salt and pulse a few times to mix.
• In a measuring cup, add ½ cup of extra virgin olive oil and ⅓ cup of cold water together. The remaining water will be added as needed but in my batch, I used all of the ½ cup of water.
• Run the food processor and add the oil and water mixture with machine running. Add the remaining water if needed to bring the dough together.
• Pour out onto a floured surface and knead for one minute.
• Shape into a rectangle, cover tightly with plastic and let sit at room temperature for one hour.
• After the hour has elapsed, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Rack should be at the very bottom of the oven with a pizza stone on the rack if possible.
• Add the drained ricotta, grated cheese, scallions, eggs, milk and salt to the zucchini and rice. Mix to combine.
• Flour the counter and roll the dough out so it is longer and wider than your 12X18 inch buttered pan. (The recipe as written yielded a very thin dough. It is however soft enough that it stays together so make sure it gets rolled larger than the pan. If I was to do this recipe over again, I probably would have increased the amount of dough by about 25%.)
• Roll the dough up on a floured rolling pin then unroll onto the prepared sheet pan, letting the excess hang over. Tuck the sides and corners in but do not cut off excess.
• Pour the ricotta batter onto the dough and spread to the edges.
• Fold the overhanging dough over the top of each edge, pleating the four corners.
• Place on top of the pizza stone and bake for 60-70 minutes or until slightly browned and a knife inserted into the center, comes out clean. If it doesn’t brown, you may consider placing it under the broiler for a minute. We did with ours.
• Cool 30 minutes and cut into 20 pieces.