Recipe Revision - Plum & Port Crostata

This recipe for Plum & Port Crostata is compliments of the "Martha Stewart Living." This gorgeous pastry was featured on the last page of the magazine and was just too tempting to resist. A crostata by definition is an Italian baked dessert tart, traditionally prepared by folding the edges of the dough over the top of the jam-like filling (often cherries, peaches, apricots, or berries) creating a more "rough" look, rather than a uniform, circular shape. It can also be filled with pieces of fruit and pastry cream or ricotta. (Yum!)

As always, I followed the recipe, for the most part, and I have my revisions to the recipe.

Original Recipe
Plum & Port Crostata

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
1 1/2 tsp. coarse salt (I use kosher salt)
1/2 tsp. granulated sugar (I use Baker's Sugar)
4 oz. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tbs. ice water
1 1/2 cups ruby port (You can find port in the wine section of any decent grocery. I paid $6 for a bottle)
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 Thai chile, seeded & minced (optional. I used 1/2 a large serrano pepper, from the Farmers' Market)
2 lbs. Italian prune plums, halved and pitted (I used overripe black plums from Fresh and Easy)
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon (I always double or triple the spices! I also prefer Saigon cinnamon as it's sweetest.)
1 tsp. heavy cream, for brushing
Sanding sugar, for sprinkling (I used Raw Sugar)

1. Pulse flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add butter, and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. With machine running, slowly add ice water until dough comes together. Shape into a disk. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8" thickness. Fit into an 8-inch pie dish, leaving 1-inch overhang. Freeze for up to 30 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Simmer port and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Add chile if desired (while hot). Cover, and let cool for 10 minutes.

4. Stir together the remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp. salt, plums, cornstarch, cinnamon, and port syrup. Transfer to pie shell. Fold in overhang to form a "crust"; brush crust with cream; sprinkle crust with sugar. Bake for 30 minutes; reduce over to 375 degrees. Bake until golden and center is bubbling, about 1 1/2 hours more. Let cool. Enjoy!



As it baked, the kitchen had a great aroma, a cinnamon-sweet earthy smell. This is part of my love of cooking, especially pies and tarts. After I let it cool about 30 minutes, I served the slices a la mode with a good-quality vanilla ice cream.

After the first bite I was hooked. The crust was nice and crumbly, and it stayed dry even on the bottom. The filling was really tart (a bit much for the huge slice I cut myself), but the filling had an amazing texture, jam-like and smooth. The hubby, after sneaking a bite, exclaimed "Unglaublich!" (Translation: "Unbelievable!"). All in all, the Plum & Port Crostata was a hit.

A few things to note in the original recipe:

• Make sure you're using an 8-inch pie dish if you want the pretty fold. My standard 9 1/2 inch version just didn't do the form justice. Plus after loving the crust so much, I can't imagine what the underside of that edge must taste like, having soaked up 2 hours worth of bubbling fruit syrup.
  

• The crostata has a dramatic fold-over for the "crust." Your dough will crack if it's too cold, so my advice is to freeze for no more than 15 minutes (not the recipe's 30), then transfer to fridge to keep cool.

• Depending on your stove top, the port reduction can take longer than just 25 minutes. Be prepared (and watch your freezing crust) during this step. The recipe doesn't really alert you to keep multiple timers going.
  

• Plum peels are distinctly tart. I think my variety, the same that most of you could find at the grocery, is particularly tart. In a second version, I'd use cherries and blackberries, as I think they would be sweeter and still maintain the tartness that makes this a crisp summer dessert.

Recipe Revision:
Plum & Port Crostata

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for surface
1 1/2 tsp. coarse salt
3/4 tsp. granulated sugar (I wanted it a bit sweeter.)
4 oz. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 tbs. ice water
1 1/2 cups ruby port
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 Serrano or other pepper, seeded & minced
1 1/5 lb. cherries, pitted
8 oz. blackberries
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. heavy cream, for brushing
Raw sugar, for sprinkling

1. Pulse flour, 1/2 tsp. salt, and sugar in a food processor. Add butter, and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal. With machine running, slowly add ice water until dough comes together. Shape into a disk. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough to 1/8" thickness. Fit into an 8-inch pie dish, leaving 1-inch overhang. Freeze for up to 15 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Simmer port and 1/2 cup brown sugar in a saucepan over medium heat until reduced to 1/2 cup, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Add chile if desired (while hot). Cover, and let cool for 10 minutes.

4. Stir together the remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 tsp. salt, plums, cornstarch, cinnamon, and port syrup. Transfer to pie shell. Fold in overhang to form a "crust"; brush crust with cream; sprinkle crust with sugar. Bake for 30 minutes; reduce over to 375 degrees. Bake until golden and center is bubbling, about 1 hour more. Let cool. Serve with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. Enjoy!



I think this recipe a great way to use up any summer fruits that are turning a bit past their prime. All that extra sweetness is transformed into thick, syrup goodness. Here's to recycling fruit that might look past it's prime!