Jam Crostata

A crostata is a traditional Italian tart, originally created by peasants to use up the pantry reserves of jam, or the glut of seasonal fruit laying around to create a sweet treat for the family. It may seem like something to serve as a dessert, but Italians typically eat a sweet pastry, biscuit or cake with their morning coffee, and this crostata is a common breakfast item. When you holiday in Italy, most accommodations include breakfast, and this crostata, or something like it, is always on the table as part of the breakfast buffet.

The crostata can be made in advance and keeps well for a few days. Use whatever jam you like, but make sure it is really good jam, as it is the star of this tart. Local farmer’s markets are full of talented people selling amazing jams and preserves, and many excellent jams can be found at a supermarket or local deli, or if you feel so inclined, make your own. My picks are fig or apricot jam, but anything goes here.

The pastry is gently flavoured with a touch of lemon and vanilla and is simple to make. Don’t be concerned about making your own pastry. This is easy and quite forgiving.

Best made with a food processor, it takes all the work out of it and is done in seconds. But, if you don’t own one, you can make it by hand by using the ‘rubbing’ method where you rub the butter into the flour to resemble breadcrumbs (the job the processor does in seconds), then gently bringing the ingredients together before forming into a ball and chilling.

The key to good pastry that is crisp and doesn’t shrink when baked is to ensure all the ingredients stay as chilled as possible prior to baking – which is why the food processor is your friend as there is no transfer of body heat like you get when making by hand.  Therefore, if making by hand, work quickly.

This is a rustic tart, there is no need for perfection here. A final flourish of icing sugar always makes any tart, cake or dessert look beautiful and hides any imperfections anyway!

Jam Crostata

A simple, versatile rustic tart using any jam you like.

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Servings: 8

Ingredients Equipment Method

Ingredients

  

• 300 g plain flour
• 115 g cold butter, diced
• 80 g caster sugar
• ¼ tsp salt
• 2 tbsp lemon rind, finely grated
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk (extra)
• 600 g jam
• 1 egg (additional) whisked with 1 tsp water (egg wash)
• icing sugar, for dusting

Equipment

• 1 food processor

Method

 

1. Put the flour, butter, sugar, salt, grated rind and vanilla into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until it looks like rough breadcrumbs.
2. Add the whole egg and extra yolk and pulse until the mixture just comes together. If it is a little dry, add scant amount of cold water until it just comes together.
3. Remove and knead gently to form a ball. Cut 2/3 of the mixture and wrap in cling wrap, then wrap the remaining dough separately. Put in the fridge to chill for 1 hour.
4. Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
5. Take the larger piece of dough from the fridge and, working quickly so the dough remains cold, roll out in-between two sheets of baking paper to a thickness of around 1 cm so that it fits into a 24 cm round loose bottom tart tin.
6. Remove one sheet of baking paper and flip the dough into the base of the tin, peel off the other sheet and press the pastry in and up the sides of the tin. Trim the edges. Prick the base all over with a fork.
7. Fill the tart case with your favorite jam.
8. Roll remaining pastry and cut into thin strips, around 1 cm wide. Lay the pastry strips over the top of the jam filling, overlapping diagonally to create a lattice pattern.
9. Brush the pastry with a little egg wash and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, or until pastry is golden.
10. Allow to cool, then carefully remove from the tin. Dust with icing sugar and serve.

Recipe from my book – Food for Sharing Italian Style, New Holland Publishers Images – Jonathan VDK