Friday, July 30, 2021

The Main(e) Dessert

 


It's true, when you combine the sharp sweetness of the blueberry and the tempting texture of the peach, you get a wonderful combination that makes most desserts sing. And Brooke Dojny, who wrote the cookbook Dishing Up Maine (where admittedly, they know a little bit about blueberries) stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about a fantastic recipe that really brings these two winning foods together. Brooke told Tonia about her Blueberry-Peach Crustada, where she uses a tart crust with some corn starch.  She then presses the crust into a spring-form pan.  Toss blueberries and sliced peaches into the crust, along with more corn starch and sugar, and bake it all together.  Brooke says the sugar will caramelize, and the blueberry juice will run right into the peaches.  It's an amazing taste experience!

Crust:
1-1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons corn starch
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons ice cold water

Filling:
1 pint fresh blueberries
2 peaches, peeled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of salt
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice

Egg wash: 1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Coarse sugar for sprinkling on dough

Directions:

To make the crust:
In a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar.
Pulse in butter until mixture looks like cornmeal.
Add just enough water until dough starts to come together.
Flatten into a disk, wrap, and refrigerate about 30 minutes.

To make the fruit filling:
In a large bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt.
Add the blueberries, sliced peaches, and lemon juice.
Gently toss to coat the fruit with the mixture.

Preheat oven to 375° F.

On a lightly floured piece of parchment, roll the dough into a 12-inch circle.
Place the fruit in the center of the dough circle, leaving a 2-inch border all around.
Gently fold the dough border up and around the edges of the filling.

Carefully slide the paper with the crostata onto a baking sheet.
Brush the top of the dough with the egg wash.
Sprinkle some coarse sugar over the dough border.
Bake for 40 minutes.
Remove from oven and cover dough with foil to prevent burning.
Return to oven and bake additional 5 to 10 minutes.
Transfer crostata with paper to a wire rack to cool.