Blueberry Crostata

Celebrate blueberry season with a rustic Blueberry Crostata. Simple yet elegant, a crostata is easier to make than pie but still all the same great flavor. Buttery crust, jammy fruit, it doesn’t get any better than this. Well, maybe with a dollop of ice cream or whipped cream.

Admittedly I was never one for a baked fruit dessert. That is until I made a blueberry crostata last summer. When I tell you it quickly became one of my *new* favorite desserts, I really do mean it. Yes, it is THAT good. So here’s the thing, I’m really a texture person and sometimes the consistency of certain fruits when they’re baked isn’t really all that delicious. I recently had a strawberry rhubarb pie and I should’ve known I wouldn’t like it. Cooked strawberries are one of the fruits that should not be cooked. Sorry not sorry.

Whether you call it a crostata or a galette, they’re really the same thing. Galette is the French term and Crostata is the Italian term. A crostata is a rolled out piece of dough that is piled up with fruit (and/or veggies for a savory crostata) in the center. Next, you take the edges of the dough and fold them in about an inch or so to create a crust and finally use an egg wash with coarse sugar to get a crispy crust. Crostatas are free-form, so you really don’t have to worry about crimping your pie dough, having the pie dough shrink, and/or worrying that it looks perfect. It’s the beauty of the crostata, no two will look the same and the rustic look is what makes it so charming.

Ingredients: Blueberry Crostata

1. Pie Dough – Either use store bought dough or homemade, use whatever brings you less stress. When I made the crostata once with store bought dough, the filling was just about half what I’m using here in this recipe. Store bought crusts always come two in a pack (when I’ve bought them) so you could use them both and make the full amount. And if you’re making homemade, this recipe here or this recipe are quite simple to make as well.
2. Blueberries: Fresh or frozen will work in this recipe. I used blueberries here because it’s a cooked fruit I can stand behind. If you prefer peaches, apricots, or a mix of berries, all would work great and are in season and in abundance now.
3. Lemon: Zest your lemon first and then use the lemon to get the juice. If you were using a different fruit, you can leave this pop of flavor out and/or use a lime for pairing with some of the other fruits.
4. Sugar– Depending on how sweet your fruit is, you can always adjust the amount of sugar you’re using. I used just 1/3 cup for the 4 cups of blueberries, which overall isn’t that much. Haven’t tried with honey or maple syrup, the sugar is typically the better option here for sticking to the berries and not giving too much liquid. On the crust/edge, I used turbinado sugar to give it a little more texture.
5. Salt– Just a pinch of salt for contrast in the mix of sugar and lemon zest.
6. Cornstarch – Your secret ingredient to help get that jammy effect from the berries, cornstarch. While your berries will naturally cook and give some juice, that little bit of cornstarch helps bring it all together. A great ingredient to keep on hand if you’re baking. I used it in my fudge popsicles also to help the pudding thicken.
7. Egg – Mixed with a tablespoon of water or whole milk and beaten, you’ll use this as an egg wash for your crust. Promise it won’t taste like egg, but it sure does help it to create an epic crust. Trust me. Use the rest as a scrambled egg – no food waste in this house!

How To Make A Blueberry Crostata

Crostatas are rustic and unique, no two are the same! Roll out your dough, store-bought or homemade, pile the fruit on top, bake and voila, a stress-free version of a pie. Buttery, flaky crust and jammy fruit equals perfection.

1. Roll: out your pie dough to 1/8″ thickness. No worries if it doesn’t look like a perfect circle. I try to keep moving the dough around to allow for it to be even in thickness, but it definitely never turns out like a perfect circle.
2. Zest/Juice: Zest your lemon first and then juice it afterwards.
3. Mix: the blueberries, cornstarch, and lemon juice. Then separately mix your sugar, salt, and lemon zest. Next, mix them all together.
4. Pile: the blueberries on to the center of your pie dough. Leave at least an inch or two so that you’re able to fold the dough in. Move any blueberries around that are needed to make sure they’re spread out a bit. It might seem like too many blueberries, but rest assured it is not.
5. Preheat: the oven to 400˚F. Meanwhile, place the crostata in the fridge to keep the dough cool.
6. Fold: When the oven has reached temperature, fold the edge of the crostata in to create a crust/border. Mix the egg with a tablespoon of water and/or whole milk and brush the edges with this egg wash. Sprinkle the crust with turbinado sugar.
7. Bake: at 400˚F for 30 minutes. Rotate pan and continue cooking for 15-20 minutes more – check to make sure the crust doesn’t get too brown (and if so, you can always cover with aluminum foil) to ensure that the dough bakes and the edge doesn’t get too crispy.
8. Serve: with ice cream or whipped cream if you like. But whatever you do, enjoy!

OTHER BBQ RECIPES

• Mexican Corn Elote
• Watermelon, Mint, Feta Salad
• Mango Salsa
• Blueberry Popsicles

Print