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Raspberry Crostada

I am not ignoring pumpkin or pecan pies by bringing raspberries to our table but this crostada has been part of "our" Thanksgiving for a few years now. I need to explain the "our" before I explain the pie. I don’t get to cook Thanksgiving dinner which always leaves me frustrated, so I cook a mini dinner with all the traditional items just for the two of us on tuesday. B. thinks of it as practice, I, on the other hand, like searching for new recipes, setting up the table, enjoying the evening and telling him how thankful I am for his love and friendship. We had this beautiful crostada for dessert instead of the traditional Thanksgiving pies and the reason for it dates back to my first year at the restaurant. After making dozens of pumpkin, pecan and apple pies for that day I started craving something else for dessert and I am thankful that I have a husband ready to indulge my weirdness and my cooking whims so this is what I served that (rehearsal) evening.
Like a lot of people this holiday season, I am always on the lookout for variations of the traditionals dishes and desserts, maybe another brined turkey recipe or a pecan streudel pumkin pie, or a chocolate and pecan pie, that kind of variation. I liked my old recipe for the crostada but when I read about the one I am about to post I knew I wanted to try it. Why? Because it came with a beautiful story.

A few month ago, Mrs. B of Eating Suburbia, asked some food bloggers if they’d be willing to test some recipes for the upcoming release of the book she wrote with Michele Anna Jordan, The World is A Kitchen. I just did it for the fun of it , but as a "thank you", Mrs B. sent me a copy of the book, which I devoured the day I received it. The subtitle explains it all "Cooking Your Way Through Culture Stories, Recipes and Resources". It is chock full of wonderful stories, inspirational cultures and traditions. Monday night, I remembered reading the beautiful story of Giuseppa teaching Caterina how to make Crostada from scratch in her Italian kitchen. Just reading about Caterina’s struggle to grasp the making of the dough or how to respect the food instead of trying to conquer it makes you want to try your hand at it. I believe this has making my new "to go" recipe for rapsberry tart. I used raspeberry but you can use strawberry or plum.

Raspberry Crostada, adapted from "The World is A Kitchen":

For the dough:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup butter, at room temperature
1 egg + 1 egg yolk
grated zest of a lemon

Filling:
2 cups raspberry jam

Mix the crust ingredients until they form a ball, trying to knead the dough as little as possible. Refrigerate for an hour. Roll out to 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch thick. Fit into a 9 inch pie plate. Cut whatever dough hangs from the sides. Spread jam over the bottom. Re-roll and cut remaining crust and cut out decorative shapes and strips to form a lattice. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Cool and serve.

It was delicious. The addition of the grated lemon zest makes the world of difference. The only change I would make would be to blind bake the crust 15 minutes prior to filling it.
If you struggle with your lattice work, head over to Smitten Kitchen where Deb wrote a great post to help out.

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Comments


Anonymous November 23, 2006 um 3:31 am

It always seems to me that when we are fexible with traditon, the tradition takes on a deeper meaning. Part of being open to the world.
The raspberry crostada looks most excellent.


foodiemama November 23, 2006 um 5:51 am

that looks amazing.


Meeta K. Wolff November 23, 2006 um 11:58 am

Helene,
Tradition is what you and your family make it to be. Your little ritual sounds warm and loving. The crostada is a lovely and welcoming change.

Thank you for your kind comments on my blog.

Meeta


Lis November 23, 2006 um 1:14 pm

Wow! It’s beautiful! I couldn’t wait for this post – so happy it’s here! hee!

How was the rest of the meal? Well that’s a silly question, I’m sure it was fabulous 😀

I will definitely try this recipe as it looks and sounds so wonderful. Happy Thanksgiving, my friend! 😀


Brilynn November 23, 2006 um 2:14 pm

This looks delicious. I’d take a slice of this anytime.


Lauren November 23, 2006 um 2:59 pm

Aw – I love that you have a litte holiday for the two of you… it sounds great. People can sometime lose the meaning of giving thanks but you’ve captured it there.

and the crostada, of course, looks wonderful.


Julia November 23, 2006 um 3:08 pm

this looks indeed really nice!
tasty and perfect and comforting…
served still slightly warm from the oven – oh I got to stop or I start drooling! 😉


Mrs. B November 24, 2006 um 6:46 am

I am honored that you tried out our recipe for the holiday. I have been making crostata for years, and it has always been a hit. Oddlly enough I would make it for Christmas morning, as it can be made ahead of time. Great with the morning cup of joe. I also found that you can freeze them without too much harm. Hope your turkey day was a good one!


Patricia Scarpin December 4, 2006 um 5:56 pm

Helene, your recipes are always so inspiring – I’m crazy about raspberries!


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