Raspberry Tart, Tamale Pie

DEAR SOS: My husband and I had a fabulous fresh raspberry tart at Mona Lisa Cafe in Santa Barbara. Can you help with a recipe?

--JAN

DEAR JAN: The Mona Lisa Cafe provided us with this recipe, which other readers will enjoy, particularly at this time of year. The highly perishable but delicious mascarpone , a sweet, Italian creamy cheese used in desserts, is available at Italian markets, gourmet cheese shops and many supermarkets. This tart would be wonderful to top off Thanksgiving dinner or any holiday meal.

MONA LISA CAFE RASPBERRY TART

2 cups mascarpone cheese

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup sour cream

Zest 1 large orange, minced

Baked Tart Shell

2 1/2 pints raspberries or strawberries

3 ounces white chocolate

In medium bowl of mixer combine mascarpone and sugar until smooth. Add sour cream and zest and mix until creamy. Spoon filling into cooled Baked Tart Shell, distributing evenly.

Arrange raspberries in concentric circles to cover all filling. Or, if desired, leave 1/2-inch border around outer edge and with additional mascarpone cream, pipe scallops or rosettes around edge.

Chop white chocolate and place in stainless steel bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Place 1-inch water in saucepan. Bring to boil, turn off heat and place bowl of white chocolate on top. When chocolate begins to melt, remove from pan and mix until smooth.

Pour into cone of parchment paper or squeeze bottle with piping nozzle and pipe lines about 1/4-inch apart across tart. Repeat to form lattice. Chill 1 hour. Cut and serve. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each of 6 servings contains about:

657 calories; 385 mg sodium; 110 mg cholesterol; 42 grams fat; 65 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams protein; 0.79 gram fiber.

Baked Tart Shell

1 1/2 cups flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, cold, cut into pieces

6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Place flour, sugar and salt in food processor and mix. Add butter, 1 piece at time, and mix only until butter is cut into flour mixture. Mixture should resemble coarse meal. Add cream and mix until dough comes together (it will look dry at this point). Place dough on lightly floured board and form into dish. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 1/2 hour.

On floured board, roll disc out evenly into 12-inch circle. Roll back onto rolling pin and gently unroll over 10-inch fluted tart pan. Press into pan gently and trim so there is extra inch of dough around edge. Fold excess dough and build up sides of shell. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. Pierce bottom of shell with fork or line shell with parchment paper and pie weights. Bake at 325 degrees 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Let cool. Makes 1 (10-inch) tart shell.

*

DEAR SOS: About 20 years ago you printed a recipe for tamale pie in the Home magazine supplement of The Times. I would like a copy of that recipe.

--DOROTHY

DEAR DOROTHY: We’ve printed many such recipes. Here’s one that sounds similar to the one you describe.

TAMALE PIE

2 onions, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

5 tablespoons oil

1 1/2 pounds beef, cut in 1/2-inch cubes

3 1/2 teaspoons salt

3 1/2 tablespoons chili powder

1 (1-pound 14-ounce) can tomatoes

1 1/2 cups sliced ripe olives

1 (12-ounce) can whole kernel corn

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

4 1/2 cups boiling water

1 1/2 cups yellow cornmeal

1/2 cup shredded Jack cheese

Paprika

In skillet cook onions and garlic in hot oil, then remove. Add beef cubes and brown. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 2 tablespoons chili powder, tomatoes, olives, onions-garlic mixture, corn and green pepper. Cover and cook 1 1/2 hours.

Cool. To make masa crust, add 2 teaspoons salt and remaining chili powder to boiling water. Gradually add cornmeal, stirring constantly. Cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Line greased 9-inch square baking pan with layer of masa. Add meat filling and cover with remaining masa.

Bake at 325 degrees 1 hour 15 minutes. Top with cheese. Season to taste with paprika. Bake 15 minutes longer. To freeze before baking, wrap in foil and seal. Store in freezer up to 3 months. To heat, unwrap and bake at 375 degrees 1 hour 30 minutes. Top with cheese, sprinkle with paprika and bake 15 minutes longer. Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

400 calories; 1,568 mg sodium; 44 mg cholesterol; 21 grams fat; 36 grams carbohydrates; 20 grams protein; 2 grams fiber.