Crostata di Ricotta

this lovely recipe comes directly from my father's hands. he makes this Crostata every time a get back to my roots in Monte Argentario. the liqueur is a little secret that my father's been using since he worked as chef on ships


Ingredients (makes one 24cm round crostata plus some extras for biscuits)

350 gr plain flour
150 gr white sugar
80 gr unsalted butter
3 level tsp baking powder
250 gr Italian Ricotta
choc chips
Alchermes liqueur
2 eggs

Process

Turn on the oven on 180C.
In a bowl mix sugar, flour, baking powder, crack the eggs and chop up  the cold butter in little cubes.
For a wonderful pastry the sugar needs to be cold.
With all the ingredients try to make a ball shaped dough, not sticky. If it is sticky, add some flour.

When ready, lay the pastry onto the surface of the tin, 1cm deep.
Lay the dough on the sides.

Then, in a little bowl pour the ricotta and a some choc chips, as many as you wish and a spoonful of sugar.
Mix up everything and spread up around the base of the pastry.
The pink color in the picture is given by a famous Italian liqueur called Alchermes.
Use the left over pastry to do the crossings on the ricotta.
Roll up some pastry and build up bread-stick shaped (half the size of an average bread stick) stripes and lay them up on the Crostata.

The oven should be well hot by now.
Put the Crostata in the oven and wait for 20 minutes at least.
If you like it more brown, leave it in for 10 extra minutes. The Crostata will be more crunchy.
Sprinkle some icing sugar for a professional touch

Tips
As an alternative, you may use jam. Be careful. It should not be too liquid or the base of the Crostata will soak up. And you could also use Nutella
Another alternative is given by using brown sugar instead of white. This is a tremendous version. Very yummy and healthier, as the brown sugar has been processed less in the factories.
Talking about the Alchermes, which is pretty impossible to find in the UK, I suggest to find some colorant in the groceries like Dr Oetker's.