Crostata di Frutta
When I was in Italy, a 90 year old Tuscan woman called Giovanna taught me how to make this gorgeous and very simple crostata di frutta. We ate this crostata as a breakfast cake with coffee in the morning.
This crostata can be topped with your favourite seasonal jam and sliced fruit. In autumn, I love the combination of homemade quince jam topped with thinly sliced beurre bosc pears. For those special moments, you could serve this crostata with a very generous dollop of double cream.
The pastry dough also makes delectable butter biscuits. You can alter the pastry recipe to make chocolate biscuits by combining 150g flour and 50g of cocoa instead of the 200g of flour mentioned below.
This crostata serves 8-10 people.
Preparation: 1.5 hours and cooking time
INGREDIENTS
Pastry
200g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
100g caster sugar
Pinch of salt
100g butter, cut into small cubes
1 egg, lightly beaten
Fruit layer
1 cup, quince jam (or more if you need it)
1 beurre bosc pear, thinly sliced
1 tbs lemon juice, freshly squeezed
2 tbs brown sugar
METHOD
Pre-heat your fan-forced oven to 160 degrees celsius
Grease and line with baking paper a 20cm square or round spring form pan or baking tin
To make the pastry, add the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt to a medium sized bowl and combine well. Then add the butter and mix with your fingertips until breadcrumbs form. Add the beaten egg and mix gently with your fingertips and hands until a dough is formed
To prepare the pastry case, gently flour your bench and rolling-pin. Roll out the dough to the point that you know it will fit your baking tin on the bottom and about 4cm up the sides. Add the rolled pastry to the tin and use your fingers to gently shape it, making sure it is as even as possible. The base needs to be about 1.5cm in thickness or to your liking. Cut off any excess dough and make biscuits with them. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork and put aside
With a knife, thinly slice your pears, leaving the skin on, and add to a small bowl. Drizzle your pears with lemon juice and gently combine with your fingertips so the fruit does not break
Liberally spread the base with quince jam and top with the thinly sliced fruit to make a beautiful design. Allow the fruit to overlap, but do not over-stack it too much, as you want it to be delicate
Sprinkle the brown sugar evenly over the fruit
Cook in the oven for approximately 40 - 50 minutes, or until the pastry is cooked through and has some colour to it
Allow the crostata to cool completely before serving