How to Bake a Crostata - Italian Pie Recipes

Pie season is upon as, as chefs, bakers, parents and singles churn out apple and pumpkin pies in honor of Thanksgiving.
Crostata is a lighter version of pie, made with a shortcake type of dough and a topping of jam, ricotta or nuts. It is more of a desert than a side dish, as you will see from the recipes.

We will start with a simple recipe.

Jam Crostata:
1.6 cups flour
3 eggs
9 tablespoons sugar
9 tablespoons butter
Grated lemon rinds
Jam of choice

Preparation:
Mix the flour and sugar and add 3 egg yolks and ½ the white of one egg. Melt butter, let cool and add to mixture. Fold lemon rind into dough and mix some more.

I have found 9 tbsp of butter to be excessive, so I usually cut down on the butter and add some flour, though not too much. The dough should be nearly as sticky as cookie dough.

Work the dough for 10 minutes, then refrigerate for about ½ an hour.

Roll out most of the dough in a pan, rectangular or round according to our preference. Spread the jam over the surface, making sure not to use too much.

Take the remaining dough and form thin ropes which you will place on top of the jam in a criss-cross pattern.

Bake at 350 F for approximately 35 minutes.

Buon Appetito!

Crostata of Ricotta: (use this site to convert grams )

Crust:
300g flour
150g butter
150g sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
Pinch of salt

Filling:
500g Ricotta
150 g sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
Raisins
Pinoli (pine nuts)
Lemon rind

On a board or in a wide bowl form a well with the flour and sugar. Pour eggs and softened butter in the well, and quickly mix everything to form dough, then let sit for 30 minutes or so while you mix the filling.

Pad a pie pan with the dough and add filling.

Bake at 350 F until crust is golden and filling has formed a crunchy top.

Alternative filling:

Amaretti: pulverize 10 amaretti biscuits, add some amaretto liqueur, one tablespoon sweet cocoa and 3 tablespoons of prune jam.

Enjoy, and please report back!