Cherry Plum Rustic Crostata
A simple yet impressive dessert
Equipment
- 1 sheet pan
Ingredients
For the crostata
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 Tbsp. sugar
- 3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
- 1/4 cup ice water
For the filling
- 1/2 cup slivered almonds
- 2 Tbsp. flour
- 1/4 cup plus 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 lb. cherry plums, pitted and sliced 1/4 inch thick (about 12 cherry plums)
- 1 tsp. almond extract
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 Tbsp. Turbinado sugar
- 2 Tbsp. apricot jam (for optional glaze)
Instructions
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a food processor, process almonds until chopped. Set them aside in a bowl.
- In the same food processor, Add flour, sugar, and salt and pulse a few times. Next, add in the cubed butter and pulse. Finally, add the cold water and combine until the dough comes together.
- Pour dough out on to the a lightly floured counter. Mix until it comes together into a ball. Wrap the ball in saran wrap and put it in the refrigerator to cool at least 15 minutes. Preferably longer.
- Make the filling: Combine sliced cherry plums and almond extract into a bowl and stir. Let sit.
- Dust the parchment paper lined baking sheet with flour and roll out the dough to an 11-13-inch round. Sprinkle flour on top leaving a 1-2 inch border. Next, sprinkle the crushed almonds. On top of the flour and almonds, add 1/4 cup sugar. Add the cherry plum slices in an overlapping concentric circle starting from the middle. This is free hand and does not have to be exact! Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 cup sugar on top.
- Combine a cracked egg and 1 Tbsp. water in a small bowl and whisk. Fold the edges of the dough over in a pleated fashion. There may be cracks in the dough. Brush the dough with the egg wash using a pastry brush. Sprinkle the whole crostata with turbinado sugar.
- Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. The cherry plums will be cooked and oozing slightly and the crust will be a light golden brown. Let cool.
- For the glaze, heat up jam for 20 seconds in the microwave and brush over the plums using a pastry brush. This will make it look shiny and set. Sometimes I do this step and sometimes I skip it. Using 2 spatulas, transfer the crostata to a serving platter.
- Serve in wedges at room temperature or heated slightly with a scoop of ice-cream.
Notes
Katie's Tips:
*This recipe is easily doubled. Make one for your family and one for a friend.
*If I plan ahead, I make my crostata dough a day in advance and keep it in a flat disc shaped covered in saran wrap in the refrigerator. Dough is best to work with when it is cold.
*The glaze is a nice finishing touch, but I often skip it if I'm in a time crunch. The flavor is great either way.
*Turbinado sugar is less processed sugar. It retains some molasses, so it has a light brown color and looks like large crystals. I use turbinado sugar for finishing desserts. Some people like to sprinkle on top of their coffee. Here is a picture of the bag. Sometimes it's called sugar in the raw.
*Save leftovers! Cover in an airtight container on the counter or in the refrigerator and reheat one piece at a time.
*Use this dough for other crostatas. I like to use seasonal fruit like peaches, apples, or plums.
*It is easy to omit nuts in the recipe. Skip the almond topping. The almond extract can be skipped as well.