Apple Ricotta Tart

It is definitely fall. Leaves are changing color, the air is getting crisper, and apple trees all around carry their beautiful red fruits. We are lucky to have several apple trees in our garden, so there is no shortage of apple pie, apple compote, apple chips, and apple pancakes in our kitchen right now.

An apple tart looks a little more elegant than it's rustic cousin the good old apple pie. I love them both. This tart here has a delicious ricotta cream layer, seasoned with some lemon zest. It makes the tart very fresh and light tasting. Sprinkled with some brown sugar, the apples get a nice caramelized touch. It tastes best slightly warm with some freshly whipped cream.

Blackberry Ricotta Cheesecake

I haven't made cheesecake in a while, so it was about time. I didn't want to make a plain one, but one with a fruit topping. Since summer is coming to an end, the choices for fresh fruit are getting smaller. Luckily we still had some blackberries in the garden. We picked enough of them to pile them up high on the cake, drizzled with some maple syrup.

The cheesecake batter uses a combination of ricotta, yoghurt, as well as some quark. It's really creamy, but not as heavy as when made with cream cheese. I think it would also look very pretty with raspberries, but I guess this has to wait until next year.