Name: Crostata di frutti di bosco (Mixed Berry Tart)
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 90 min
Ingredients: 250 g 00 or pastry flour; 100 g granulated sugar; 100-125 g butter (softened and cut into cubes); 1 egg plus 1 egg yolk; 1/2 tsp lievito per i dolci or baking powder; Water or milk (q.b.); 4 egg yolks; 100 g sugar; 40 g corn starch or flour; 250 ml milk; 1 tsp vanilla extract (or a vanilla bean, split open); Grated zest of 1/2 a lemon (optional); 400 g mixed berries (or much as you need to top the tart); confectioner's (powdered) sugar ((optional))

In our house dessert usually consists of nothing more than a piece of fruit, sometimes—especially in the cooler months— accompanied by one or more cheeses. Truth is I don’t have much of a sweet tooth.

But when I’m having company, or just in the mood for something more elaborate, I often turn to fruit based desserts. And here’s one that I particularly enjoy, a crostata di frutti di bosco or Mixed Berry Tart. It comes in three delicious layers: a bottom crust of pasta frolla (short pastry) a filling of crema pasticcera (pastry cream) and a topping of fresh berries. If you know your way around pasta frolla and crema pasticcera—as any proficient Italian cook should since they are veritable workhorses of Italian dessert cookery—it’s quick and easy enough to make on the regular. And yet this crostata makes for such an elegant presentation, especially if you take some care with arranging the berry topping in a pretty pattern, I wouldn’t hesitate to serve it for company or at an important family meal.

The recipe is also very versatile. You can top this crostata with a single type of berry or a mix of whatever berries you fancy. In fact, you make a crostata di frutta or fruit tart in much the same way. The possiblities are virtually endless.

Ingredients

Makes one 24 cm/9.5 inch crostata, enough for 4-6 slices

For the pasta frolla:

250g (14 oz) 00 or pastry flour
100g (3-1/2 oz) sugar
100-125 g (3-1/2 to 4 oz) softened butter, cut into cubes
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp lievito per i dolci or baking powder
Water or milk, q.b.

For the crema pasticcera

4 egg yolks
100g (1/2 cup) sugar
40g (4 Tbs) corn starch or flour
250 ml (2 cups) milk
1 tps vanilla extract (or a vanilla bean, split open)
Grated zest of 1/2 a lemon (optional)

For the topping:

400g (14 oz) mixed berries, or much as you need to top the tart
confectioner’s (powdered) sugar (optional)

Directions

Make the pasta frolla

In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a standing mixer) add the flour, sugar and baking powder. Mix well.

Add the butter and mix again, incorporating until you have a sand-like mixture. Then add the eggs and mix to form a proper dough, adding, if need be, add a spoonful or two of milk or water.

Wrap the dough and plastic wrap (cling film) and let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Make the crema pasticcera

In a standing mixer bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until smooth and the mixture forms ‘ribbons’ as the whisk rotates.

Add the flour or cornstarch slowly, bit by bit, into the mixture until fully incorporated. The mixture should be a pale yellow and quite fluffy.

Meanwhile, heat the milk (or milk and cream) over moderate heat until hot but not boiling. You will see little bubbles just beginning to form around the edge of the pot. (If you are using a vanilla bean, add it to the milk and let it steep for a few minutes, then remove it.) Take the milk off the heat and whisk it, little by little, into the mixer bowl.

Now pour the whole mixture from the bowl into the pot (along with the vanilla extract if using) and place it over very gentle heat, whisking continuously and vigorously. After a while, it should begin to thicken. Keep stirring until you have a thick custard that pulls away from the bottom of the pot as you whisk.

Remove from the heat, stir in the grated lemon zest if using, and let the mixture cool. It will thicken further as it cools. If keeping for longer than 30 minutes or so, cover with film wrap to avoid a film forming on top.

Bake the crust

Take the dough and roll it out into a round a bit wider than the tart plate you’re using. (The dough should cover the bottoms and sides.)

Lay this round onto a well buttered 24cm (9.5 inch) tart dish, making sure to cover the bottom and sides. Trim off any excess. Puncture the bottom here and there with a prongs of a fork.

Cover the dough with a round of parchment paper, add pie weights (or just some old dried beans) on top to weigh it down.

Bake in a moderate (180C/350F) oven for 15-20 minutes, then remove the crust from the oven and lift out the parchment paper and weights/beans. Put the dish back in the oven and continue baking until the crust is cooked through and just lightly browned.

Remove from the oven and let the baked crust cool completely.

Assemble the crostata

With the help of a spatula, pour the pastry cream into the tart dish and smooth out as evenly as possible across the bottom of the crust.

Now take the berries and arrange them on top of the pastry cream, if you like in a decorative pattern or just willy-nilly. Most berries should be left whole. But, unless they’re very small, strawberries are best cut in half or even quarters, depending on their size.

If desired, dust the berries with confectioner’s sugar, or serve as is.

Crostata di frutti di bosco (Mixed Berry Tart)

Notes on crostata di frutti di bosco

The usual tips for making the pasta frolla and the crema pasticcera apply here, too.

Making the pasta frolla

For the pasta frolla, the important thing is not to work it too much. That would develop the gluten and produce a less delicate crust. Pasta frolla isn’t hard to make, but it can be a bit tricky to handle. It tends to be rather sticky and doesn’t hold together the way, say, a pasta dough does. So handel it with care and always flour your surfaces and rolling pin well. And work quickly. If it’s out of the fridge too long it will become too sticky to handle. If that happens, then put it back in the firdge for 10-15 then proceed.

On little trick I like to use: Roll the dough out on a floured sheet of parchment paper. This makes placing the delicate dough much easier and avoid the risk it falls apart in the process.

Lievito per i dolci

The Italian baking powder, marketed as pane degli angeli (literally Bread of the Angels) and known generically in Italian as lievito per i dolci, is totally optional, but it does add a lovely aroma and, of course, lift to the crust. It produces a more cake like (but still crisp) crust. You can omit it altogether, in which case the crust will have the usual rather crumbly (but delicious) short pastry texture, or use standard baking powder.

Lievito pane degli angeli is a mix of baking powder, baking soda and vanilla flavoring. Here in North America, you should be able to find it in better stocked Itailan delis or online.

Making the crema pasticcera

The custard has enough corn starch or flour so it’s not very likely to curdle. That said, it is important to whisk is more or less constantly and heat it over very low heat to avoid lumps. If you do see lumps forming, take the pan off the heat immediatley and whisk as briskly as you can. With any luck, they should disappear.

Choosing and prepping the berries

I like to use a mix of raspberries, blueberries and blackberries when making a crostata di frutti di bosco, Italian recipes also often feature ribes, or red currants. Not an easy find where I live now, but they do add a lovely bit of tartness to this tart. (Bad pun intended…) And a lovely visual flair, add them in small bunches.

You can also add strawberries, though try to find them as small as you can. (That can be a challenges these days.) And only use the ones that are deep red in color. You can keep the stems on if they’re fresh—they add a lovely touch of green—but if they’re wilted, as they sadly often are, trim them off.

Strawberries can also be rather disappointing tastewise as well. To give them some oomph, toss them with a spoonful of sugar and a squeeze of lemon and let them macerate for a few minutes. Not too long or they will begin to ‘cook’. Then drain them well in a colander and proceed with topping your crostata.

Variations

As mentioned at the top, while the crust and cream filling are more or less a fixture, you can let your imagination run wild when it comes to the topping for your crostata. Not only can you mix things up berry-wise, but if you like you can use fruits like kiwis and mandarin oranges. Or in summer peaches and plums. Really whatever’s in season and suits your fancy. Fruits are generally sectioined, sliced or cut into wedges depending on their size and shape.

When using a fruit (rather than a berry) topping it’s common (but not required) to glaze the topping, usually with gelatin or agar agar dissolved in water or, if you want some additinoal sweetness, a spoonful or two of apricot jam diluted in equal parts water and briefly simmered, then cooled. The glaze is then gingerly brushed on to the fruit. This gives the topping a lovely sheen and also prevents the cut fruit from discoloring. I wouldn’t try to glaze a topping that’s all or mostly berries however. Better to use confectioner’s sugar or just leave the berries ‘naked’. Some recipes call for a few leaves of fresh mint.

You will find recipes for crostata di frutti di bosco that switch out the crema pasticcera for another creamy filling based on mascarpone or a fruit marmelade. Some even have you top the bare crust with fruit. But crema pasticcera is by far the most common filling and, to my mind at least, the best. It provides a delightful contrast in taste and texture to the fruits or berries that other filings just can’t match.

Making a crostata di frutti di bosco ahead

You can easily make the recipe in stages and complete it as your leisure. You can make the pasta frolla and refrigerate it until needed. (And if you have any lefover, it also freezes well.) You couuld also go as far as baking the crust. You can also make the crema pasticcera and keep it in the fridge until needed. (Just make sure it’s well wrapped so a film doesn’t form on top.)

And finally you can make the whole crostata ahead and keep it in the fridge for eating later in the day. Best to make it the same day so the crust doesn’t get too soggy.

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