(Food styling/Sheryl Julian; Photo by Yoon Byun/Globe Staff)
Serves 6
Begin with an all-butter food processor crust, roll it out on a lightly floured board, and fill the center with berries. To enclose them, lift the edges of the pastry up and over the filling. Let the pastry fall in an uneven pleated pattern.
BUTTER PASTRY
| 1 1/2 | cups flour |
| 1/2 | teaspoon salt |
| 1/4 | teaspoon baking powder |
| 1/2 | cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut up |
| 2 | tablespoons granulated sugar |
| 1 | egg, lightly beaten |
| 1 | teaspoon cider vinegar or orange juice |
| 2 | tablespoons ice water |
| Extra flour (for sprinkling) |
2. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture forms crumbs.
3. Add the sugar and pulse to mix it in.
4. In a bowl, combine the egg, vinegar or juice, and water. Sprinkle the liquids over the flour mixture. Pulse the dough just until it forms clumps (it should not come together to form a ball).
5. Turn the clumps out onto a lightly floured board, shape into a ball, flatten into a 4-inch disk, and wrap in foil. Refrigerate for 20 minutes.
FILLING
| 4 | cups fresh blueberries (or 2 cups frozen blueberries mixed with 2 cups fresh berries) |
| 1/3 | cup granulated sugar |
| 3 | tablespoons instant tapioca |
| Grated rind and juice of 1/2 lemon | |
| 2 | teaspoons butter, cut into pieces |
| 1 | tablespoon milk (for brushing) |
| Extra granulated sugar (for sprinkling) | |
| Confectioners’ sugar (for sprinkling) |
2. In a bowl, combine the blueberries, granulated sugar, tapioca, and lemon rind and juice.
3. On a lightly floured board, roll the pastry to a 12-inch round. Lift the pastry onto a rolling pin and lay it on the baking sheet. Heap the berries on the pastry leaving a 1 1/2-inch border at the edges. Dot the berries with butter.
4. Fold the edges up and over the fruit. It will pleat onto itself as it rests on the fruit. Brush the edges with milk and sprinkle with granulated sugar.
5. Bake the crostata for 40 minutes, turning the sheet from back to front halfway through baking. The edges should turn brown and firm. The pastry is thick in places; don’t take it from the oven before it’s fully baked.
6. Sprinkle the pastry with confectioners’ sugar before serving. Cut into wedges. Sheryl Julian
© Copyright 2011 Globe Newspaper Company.
