"Crostata" is the most classic Italian desserts. The shortcrust dough (pasta frolla) is the base for any topping. Traditionally filled with jam, once you learn the base the topping can be anything from chocolate cream, Italian nutella or ricotta and so on.
Many regions and towns in Italy have their own desserts that vary from region to region, but crostata is one of the desserts that is known and made all over the territory.
Here the dough is made as per the original recipe passed down from all the Italian Grandmothers. The topping is made with strawberries slightly cooked with sugar and lemon for a fresh homemade jam taste.
INGREDIENTS:
Dough
200g flour
20g almond flour
2 eggs
75g sugar
75g butter
1 full tea spoon of yeast (Paneangeli Vanilla Flavoured)
1 lemon
Filling
700gr strawberries chopped in 4
2/3 tablespoons sugar
1 organic lemon juice
almond flakes
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°C fan.
For the base:
On a pastry board, make a well in the middle of both flours and combine with chopped butter at room temperature. With your fingers, begin to rub the butter with a bit of flour. Next, add the lemon zest, sugar, yeast and eggs, still keeping the ingredients in the centre. With a fork, whisk the eggs, and when this is done with your hands quickly start to mix all the ingredients together with the flour. You need to work the ingredients until you make a dough. Add more flour if the dough still sticky.
Cover with cling film for 15 min and leave at room temperature.
After 15 mins, roll out the dough with the rolling pin, and transfer it to a tart pan.
Topping:
In a pan, add the strawberries, sugar and lemon juice. Cook for a few minus at lower heat, or until the sugar and the lemon start to melt with the strawberries and they just start to release gravy.
Spread the mixture evenly on top of the pastry.
Cut strips from remaining pastry, and make a lattice pattern on the crostata.
Fold in the edges of the crostata over the lattices. Here you can decorate your crostata.
For mine, I have used a fork to decorate the border around the edge.
Bake crostata in the oven for about 30/35 minutes, or until the pastry is golden.
Remove from oven, let crostata cool completely. Serve with whipped cream your choice and enjoy!!!
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