TRIPLE BERRY RUSTIC TART

TRIPLE BERRY RUSTIC TART

A rustic tart implies a free-form pie. It is not necessary to make a perfect circle, square or rectangle.  Use prepared frozen puff pastry for this recipe. Each box contains two 12-inch squares and will make two rustic tarts.

Puff pastry thaws in a short time at room temperature. Occasionally, it may crack during handling; simply press it back together. Sometimes it sticks together a little when unfolding, but separate it as best you can, dust it with a little flour and roll it out. You will want to make it a couple of inches larger all the way around than its original size. Roll it out on parchment paper to save preparation clean up and ease the transition from roll out to baking pan. The parchment will deter juice runs that might drip onto the bottom of the oven. Once the pastry is rolled out, brush what will be the inside of the tart with a little beaten egg yolk and milk or water to help seal in the juices.

This rustic tart relies on jam or jelly to surround the fruit or berries with ready-made flavor and to intensify the flavor of the filling.  Having a lot of  raspberry and plum jam on hand, I decided to use plum, but you could use any jam or jelly you like.

You could also use fresh sliced peaches with the raspberry jam.

(For one Tart, I used about 4 cups of berries.)

If you want to have a thicker filling, toss the berries with cornstarch before stirring in the jam or jelly. You can use up to one tablespoon cornstarch per cup of berries. I find fresh summer berries sweet enough with the jam, but more sugar can be included with the cornstarch if you like.

Once you’ve rolled out the pastry, transfer it to the baking pan. Place the filling in the center and start bringing the edges of the pastry toward the center. You can cut away the points or incorporate them into the crust. Brush additional egg wash on the outside of the pastry, then sprinkle with sugar. Coarse-grain turbinado sugar is nice to use, but granulated sugar works well, also. Place the cookie sheet with the tart in the freezer for 10 to 15 minutes before baking. Place the tart on the middle shelf of a preheated, 400-degree oven for about 15 to 20 minutes. Every oven is a little different, so check to be sure the pastry does not brown too quickly.

The filling with cornstarch needs to bubble a bit longer to thicken, so it will need to bake for an additional 15 minutes or so at 350 degrees. If necessary place some foil around the edges of the tart to keep it from browning too much while the filling continues to cook.

Allow the tart to cool on a rack, so air can flow around it. This will help keep the crust from becoming soggy on the bottom. Sometimes I sprinkle the parchment with thinly sliced almonds before rolling out the pastry, to add a crisp nutty flavor to the crust that’s especially good with peaches or apricots.