When you’re entertaining, you want to spend time with your guests, not slave in the kitchen. Food that looks and tastes amazing while needing little effort to pull off is the sweet spot, and this asparagus and ricotta tart lives in the sweet spot.

You can whip this together in less than 30 minutes and it is perfect for spring time get togethers. This appetizer is easy, versatile, and might just be the most beautiful thing you ever make.

Ingredients

Nobody makes puff pastry from scratch, they buy it. So don’t feel like your cheating by using something from the freezer aisle… ain’t no body got time for laminating layers of butter and dough. This is Dinner’s Late, not the Great British Bake Off.

Frozen Puff Pastry
Asparagus
Ricotta Cheese
Parmesan Cheese
Egg
Lemon Zest
Lemon Juice
Garlic
Basil
Black Pepper
Salt
Olive Oil
Honey

How to Make Asparagus Ricotta Tart

I can’t stress how easy it is to make this asparagus and ricotta tart. First, defrost and read the packaging of your puff pastry. Each brand of puff pastry will have it’s own baking instructions and that’s what you will follow for your baking instructions. The package I brought home said to bake at 425 degrees, so that’s what I preheated my oven too

Next, lay a piece of parchment paper on a baking sheet and roll your pastry out onto it. Most store bought pastry will perfectly fit the baking sheet. Then you will use a sharp knife to score a 1 inch border all the way around your pastry. This step is to create a crust and this relief cut will allow the uncovered border to puff up. be sure to not cut all the way through your pastry.

The next step is to mix together your ricotta mixture. Crack a large egg into a bowl and whisk it up. Then add your ricotta, parmesan, lemon zest, lemon juice, basil, and two tablespoons of honey to the bowl. Whisk everything together then spread it over your puff pastry, being sure to stay within the scored border.

Now crack some black pepper and sea salt over the ricotta mixture. Next, lay your asparagus out over the cheese in a pretty row and brush it with olive oil. Now, all that’s left before the oven, is to give the border of your puff pastry an egg wash. to do this, whisk together one egg and 1 tablespoon of water then paint the mixture onto the borer with a brush.

Pop your tart into the preheated oven and allow it to bake for the amount of time specified on your puff pastry’s packaging. For me, this was 20 minutes. Your pastry should be golden and your asparagus should turn bright green. After baking, remove the tart and allow it to cool. Drizzle the remaining honey over the tart and slice it into 8 or 12 slices. You can serve this warm or at room temperature.

Serving, Storage, and Variations

There’s not wrong way to serve asparagus and ricotta tart. I suggest warm or at room temperature, but I enjoy the leftovers right out of the fridge. The tart will keep in the fridge for up to three days, but your guests will devour this before then. Just be sure to keep it in an airtight container.

There are endless variations for this recipe and your imagination is your only limitation. you can skip the asparagus and go for red onions or shallots. You can add red pepper flakes for a little kick, or you can make a complete 180 and go for a peach and brown sugar tart.