Think of this recipe as a template, using whatever fruit is in season and sweetening it with about 10 grams of sugar for every 100 grams of fruit and thickening the juice with 1½ teaspoons of cornstarch. Here I’ve added a crumble, inspired by a recipe of Claudia Fleming’s. I reinforced its flavor by dusting ground pecans on the dough before spooning on the filling – this also helps keep the bottom crust crisp.
Makes a 10-inch crostata
For the crust:
• 1 recipe Claudia’s Crostata Dough
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
For the crumble:
• 1 cup Brown Butter Pecan Crumble (below)
For the filling:
• 4 medium (about 600 grams) peaches, halved, pitted, and thickly sliced
• About ¼ cup (about 60 grams) sugar
• About 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1½ teaspoons cornstarch
• Scant ¼ cup toasted pecans, finely chopped
• About 1½ teaspoons crystallized sugar (such as demerara, Sugar in the Raw, or another type of turbinado)
1. For the crust, roll the dough out on a piece of parchment into a round, about 13 inches across. Put the parchment on a baking sheet and chill for at least 15 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Make the filling by combining the peaches, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and cornstarch in a bowl. Stir to mix, then set aside for about 5 minutes.
3. Take the dough out of the refrigerator, trim it into an even circle, and brush a 2-inch border around the circumference with a beaten egg. Sprinkle the chopped pecans on the dough, stopping short of the border, then spoon the peaches (and their juices) on top. Form the crostata’s sides by lifting the dough one section at a time up and around the filling, pinching, folding, and pleating the dough to form an edge.
4. Spoon the crumble over the exposed fruit in the center of the crostata. Brush the exposed pastry with the remaining egg, then sprinkle the crust with crystallized sugar.
5. Bake the crostata on the baking sheet until the crust begins to color, about 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and continue cooking until the crust is nicely browned and the filling is bubbling, about 35 minutes more. Remove the crostata from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack to cool. Slice and serve with ice cream or whipped cream if desired.
Brown Butter Pecan Crumble
You only need a cup of this topping for the peach crostata recipe, but I suggest making the whole batch. Freeze the rest and you’ll be ready to go when you want to make a fruit crumble. This topping is also a good way to jazz up ice cream or yogurt – if that’s your plan, just bake what you need at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until it is toasted, about 25 minutes.
Makes about 4 cups
• 10 tablespoons (142 grams) butter
• A scant 1 cup (about 125 grams) pecans*
• ½ cup (110 grams) light brown sugar
• ¼ cup (50 grams) sugar
• ¾ cup (100 grams) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (100 grams) rolled oats
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)
• Pinch of Morton’s kosher salt (or a 1/4 teaspoon Diamond Crystal)
1. Put the butter in a skillet and melt over low heat, then slowly brown it, about 15 minutes. Set the butter aside to cool. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Roast the chopped pecans in the oven until they smell toasty, about 15 minutes. Roughly chop about ¾ of the nuts and put them in a mixing bowl. Finely chop the remaining pecans and set them aside for the crostata filling.
3. Add the brown and white sugars, flour, oats, cardamom (if using), and salt to the mixing bowl. Stir to combine, then use a fork to mix as you drizzle in the browned butter. Use immediately or store in a sealed plastic bag in the freezer.
*This is enough nuts for both the crumble and the crostata filling. If you are simply making the crumble, toast ¾ cup of nuts.
