Crostata di marmellata

Crostata di marmellata is an Italian jam tart with a light pastry crust, jam or fruit filling and a lattice top. Marmellata means jam  in Italian , which is what crostatas are filled with. apricot, raspberry, cherry and my personal favorite strawberry. Crostate di marmellata  is one of the most popular homemade Italian desserts.  And something you will find in most Italian kitchens and all over cafes in Italy.

Things to know about crostata di marmellata

A crostata di marmellata recipe usually features a filling of homemade jam made from the season’s latest harvest. Since this is a recipe to make year-round and some of us don’t regularly made our own jam a good quality  store- bought jam works well.

Some crostata recipes use oil instead of butter for the crust. I have used both oil and butter and my preference is butter.

Traditionally crostatas have a plain unsugar top, I like to sprinkle the top lightly with powder sugar for a pretty effect.

Ingredients

• 2  cups of flour more for the work surface
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 cup of sugar
• 1 stick of butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla
• Juice and zest from one lemon
• 2 cups of your favorite jam

Instructions

1. Add the baking powder to the flour mix until well combined place on a work surface.
2. Make a well in the center add the eggs, sugar, vanilla, lemon juice and zest,  beat with a fork or wisk until well blended. Then add the cubed cold butter. Using your hands in the shortest amount of time and as quickly as possible adding a little flour on the work surface to prevent the dough from sticking knead the pasta frolla  into a smooth soft ball. Wrap in elastic wrap and refrigerate for a least one hour or  overnight.
3. After you have chilled the dough let it come to room temperature  for10 to 15 minutes. Preheat your oven to 375-degrees and grease a 8 inch tart pan with butter.
4. Then cut the dough into 2 parts one into 1/3 for the the lattice top set aside.  Take the remaining 2/3 piece of Italian pastry dough and on a lightly floured work surface roll out the dough into 1/4 inch thick circle. Wrap the dough around the rolling pin and unwrap over the tart pan pressing into shape, cut off excess and add to the reserved dough. Roll out the reserved dough into a circle 1/4 inch thick cut into 10 equal size strips.
5. Spread the pastry crust with the jam .  Lay 5 of the dough strips over the jam in a diagonal pattern. Lay the remaining 5 pieces in a diagonal patter in the opposite direction forming a diamond pattern.
6. Bake in a preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes. let cool slightly before cutting. ENJOY!!!!