Italian Cream Cheese Torta
A super-delicious recipe to use as an appetiser. Garlic cream cheese is layered with sun-dried tomatoes, pesto and mozzarella cheese. It's pretty and darn tasty. Serve with crackers, crostini or crusty bread.
Ingredients
Serves: 32
- 85g sun-dried tomatoes
- 450g cream cheese, softened
- 1 clove garlic, finely chopped
- 10 slices mozzarella cheese
- 225g pesto
Method
Prep:20min ›
Extra time:3hr chilling ›
Ready in:3hr20min
- Bring a small saucepan of water to the boil. Turn off heat. Place sun-dried tomatoes in the water and cover for 5 minutes. Drain and finely chop.
- In a medium bowl, mix cream cheese and garlic.
- Line a medium bowl or loaf tin with a large piece of dampened cheese cloth. Layer with 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese. Spread with 1/2 the pesto.
- Pour in 1/2 the cream cheese and garlic mixture. Layer with 1/2 the sun-dried tomatoes. Layer with 1/3 mozzarella, remaining pesto, remaining cream cheese and garlic mixture and remaining sun-dried tomatoes. Top with remaining mozzarella.
- Pull cheese cloth around the layered mixture and gently press into a bowl to mould and remove excess oil. Chill in the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours. Remove cheese cloth and turn upside down onto a large dish to serve.
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Reviews & ratings
Average global rating:
(55)
Reviews in English (52)
My first attempt ended in disaster as I knocked the large glass bowl I was using to mold the torte into fell from my kitchen island onto the ceramic tile...there was no rescuing it from the broken glass. I did have enough of the ingredients reserved for a mini-version and was pleased it came out so nicely. I have since just made it again and used paper towels placed on plastic cling wrap in lieu of cheesecloth and it worked fine. I also put it in the freezer for one hour rather than 3 hours in the fridge with an excellent outcome. This is one of those dishes that everyone keeps coming back for more! - 27 Jan 2009 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)
This is dynamite! I made a half-batch with only 3 slices of provolone - I thought I had more when I started. I used 4 cloves of roasted garlic for 8 oz. of cream cheese. (That cheese could stand alone as a spread.) I didn't have any cheesecloth, but I used a small springform pan that was the exact size of the slice of provolone. I brushed pita bread with oil, sprinkled w/ salt and pepper and Italian seaoning, lightly toasted and cut into triangles. - 23 Aug 2003 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)
I have made this but add chopped black olives and chopped pistachios....it is one of those things you bring to a party that people always ask you for the recipe! Be sure the provolone cheese is not sliced thick...makes it difficult to serve. - 10 Feb 2011 (Review from Allrecipes US | Canada)