Easy Recipe: Southern Baked Ricotta

This is my version of a baked ricotta. There are other WLS-friendly recipes for baked ricotta out there, including Shelly's version. But I think mine is sufficiently different to warrant a separate posting. I like to basically burn mine so it gets that browned cheese flavor, reminiscent of a good Southern macaroni pie.* Yummm!

I plan to try this with meat and/or different veggies next time, which would make it more Southern. I think the main difference between the other baked ricotta recipes and mine is that I don't want it to be Italian-tasting. There's no tomato sauce; there's no herbs, etc. It could go with any type of cuisine, but in this form I felt like I was eating the top of a macaroni pie. Which is always a good thing.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound (half of a large container) Sorrento part skim ricotta
• 1 pound (half of a large container) Sorrento fat free ricotta
• 1 12-oz. tub Philadelphia fat free cream cheese, softened
• 1 bag Sargento shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1 box of frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and separated
• 1 pinch nutmeg
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 egg

Directions:

• Preheat your oven to 325.
• Mix all of the ingredients together.
• Spread them in a casserole dish.
• Bake in the oven until the sides are very brown, it smells a little burnt, and the middle is slightly brown.
• Remove from the oven, let it sit for ten minutes, and eat up.

NOTE: Take it easy with this. It gave me quite a carb coma, even though it doesn't have that many carbs. But that's the only way I can describe the feeling I had. I would credit that to eating it too soon after another meal more than the nutritional content of the dish itself. I've packaged the rest of it up for the week, so will report back if it still makes me sleepy.

*"Macaroni pie" is the CORRECT term for what Yankees might refer to as "macaroni and cheese casserole." :-)