Fig & Pear Crostata

I bought a lovely bag of mixed pears at the grocery store last week, and for some reason I am just not eating them! My response to a situation like this is easy: pie!

Or, in this case, a very simple and rustic flat pie called a crostata. As far as I can tell, the only difference between a pie and a crostata is the shape. I’ve also often seen jam spread on top of a crostata like a glaze too. I might be wrong, but that’s what I’m making today, and I’m calling it a crostata.

crust:

1 C whole wheat pastry flour

pinch of salt
3 T Earth Balance
2-4 T unsweetened soy milk

1-2 T ice waterMix together flour and salt. Add Earth Balance, and cut in using your fingers, two knives, or a pastry cutter. This means you want to incorporate the butter into the flour – but leave some small bits of butter whole. Then you’ll add soy milk and ice water until the dough comes together and is soft enough to roll out. You want to get at least a tablespoon of the ice water in there because it really seems to make the dough roll out better. I’d start with 1 T water and 1 T soy milk, and increase the liquid from there if you need it.

You could refrigerate the dough after this – and you probably should, most recipes say to. But I rarely do that cause I’m too impatient.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured board into a large circle(ish), until it’s about 12-14 inches in diameter. The dough will probably crack and break a lot, but don’t worry – it’s pretty easy to fix. (See the pictures on the right.) Take a small dish of ice water, dip your fingertip into it, squish any cracks together and use the ice water as a glue to seal up the breaks. You might need to repeat this after you transfer to a baking sheet.

filling:
serves 6

6 small pears, peeled and sliced (if you don’t mind the skins, leave them on – it’s healthier that way)

2 T raw sugar

1 t vanilla extract

1 t cinnamon

1/8 t nutmeg

3 T corn starch (or more)
2 T fig spread (I like Trader Joe’s fig butter for its super short ingredients list)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. If your pears are juicy and you have so much extract in the bowl that the cornstarch is absorbed as soon as you stir once or twice, add more. You want to see a light coating of cornstarch all over the pear slices. Don’t get bogged down by the measurements here — pies are very forgiving. But since this guy is a flat pie, you want to be especially sure to have enough cornstarch, because lost juice means a less yummy pie and much messier oven.

Pour filling into the middle of the crust, leaving a two inch border around the edge. Take the edges and fold up over the sides of the filling. Personally, I think this looks great really rustic, so don’t worry if it’s a little frumpy looking – and I’m always surprised at how well it stays together, so don’t worry too much about that either. This is supposed to be an easy throw-together dessert.

Cook for about 30 minutes, until the dough is golden brown. Then add spoonfuls of fig spread over the top and spread out a little. Put back in the oven for about 5-10 minutes.

Rustic and delicious!

Nutrition facts (for 1/6th of pie): Calories: 258; Calories from Fat: 55; Total Fat: 6.1g; Saturated Fat: 1.8g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Sodium: 93mg; Total Carbohydrates: 49.1g; Dietary Fiber: 6.6g; Sugars: 18.2g; Protein: 2.8g

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