Crostata Marmellata

Jam tarts, big or little, are perfect for unexpected guests and are wonderful afternoon tea treats.

Crostata marmellata is a popular Italian jam tart found in pastry shops and homes. It’s an easy, yet impressive treat, because all you need to do, the day of, is make the pasta frolla dough for the crust. The jam is the star of the show, and I encourage you to make your own small batch jams, fresh, canned or frozen, to have on hand for these tarts. My favorite book for jams is “The Joy of Jams and Jellies and other sweet preserves” by Linda Ziedrich. She lists the recipes by fruits, so you can use whatever is in season. It’s a delight to try out combination jams for this tart. My mouth waters imagining figs in vanilla syrup, elderberry and apple, raspberry and red currant, strawberry and rhubarb, brandied cherries… plums, apricots, and peaches….

Begin with the pasta frolla recipe, and roll out the dough into a 9 or 10-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Save the scraps to make a lattice top.

Freeze the tart shell for 30 minutes, then blind bake in a preheated 350F oven for 10 minutes. Remove and allow it to cool.

Fill the shell with enough jam to just below the top of the pastry. A 13-ounce jar (1 ¾ cups) should be fine. Roll the remaining scraps out into a 10-inch circle and cut into ¾ inch strips. Twist the strips at both ends and lay them in a lattice pattern over the jam. With a pastry brush, glaze the dough strips with a little beaten egg.